New UEFA Champions League yellow card rules explained

UEFA’s Champions League disciplinary regulations outline when yellow and red cards trigger suspensions, how bookings are reset, and why players cannot miss the final through accumulated yellow cards alone.

UEFA’s disciplinary regulations for the UEFA Champions League clearly define how yellow and red cards affect player availability throughout the competition.

The rules determine when suspensions apply, how cautions are carried forward between rounds, and when bookings are wiped, helping ensure consistency across European club competitions.

Players or team officials shown a red card are automatically suspended for the next UEFA club competition match, whether in the Champions League, Europa League, Conference League or UEFA Super Cup.

UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body can impose longer bans for serious offences.From the league phase onwards, a player is suspended after accumulating three yellow cards that do not result in a dismissal.

Further suspensions follow every subsequent odd-numbered booking, including the fifth, seventh and ninth cautions. Before the league phase, the same threshold applies during qualifying rounds.

UEFA also operates a booking reset system. Yellow cards are wiped after the qualifying play-offs and again following the quarter-finals, meaning cautions do not carry into the semi-finals.

As a result, players cannot be suspended for the Champions League final through accumulated yellow cards alone, although a red card in the semi-finals can still rule them out.

Any outstanding cautions and pending yellow-card suspensions expire at the end of the season.

UEFA’s regulations also state that suspensions and single yellow cards may carry into another UEFA club competition within the same campaign when clubs move between tournaments, ensuring disciplinary records remain consistent across European competitions.