Bad image in Thai football: Players punch referees and opponents

(Dan Tri) - An ugly, unsavory image has appeared on the Thai football field again, when a player punched a referee and an opponent to the point of requiring surgery. FAT President Madam Pang wants to deal with it harshly.

The incident happened yesterday (March 2), within the framework of the Thai-League 3, a semi-professional football system in Thailand. Hua Hin City player Songkran Puangnoi punched Rajpracha player Srithai Bugok in the eye.

This action of Songkran Puangnoi of course received a red card from the referee. But the incident did not stop there, when seeing the red card was drawn, Songkran Puangnoi punched the referee again.

Thai player punched opponent in the eye and also punched the referee (Photo: Siam Sport).

Songkran Puangnoi's continuous punches at his opponents and the referee showed his aggression. Today, Rajpracha Club, where the person who was punched, filed a complaint with the authorities. They asked the law to intervene and review the legality of Songkran Puangnoi's acts of attacking others.

Also according to information from Rajpracha Club, the punched player, Srithai Bugok, will likely have to undergo eye surgery due to Songkran Puangnoi's attack.

In response to the strong public reaction in Thailand, Songkran Puangnoi took to social media to apologize to those who were attacked and to Thai audiences. The player said his behavior was just a momentary outburst.

What's more worth mentioning is that in addition to his career as a soccer player, Songkran Puangnoi also has another career as a police officer in Thailand.

Madam Pang announced that she will strictly punish players who damage the image of Thai football (Photo: FAT).

Football Association of Thailand (FAT) President Nualphan Lamsam (commonly known as Madam Pang) after hearing about this incident, requested FAT to severely punish the violator.

Madam Pang's view is that Songkran Puangnoi should be banned from playing for a long time, because this behavior damages the image of Thai football.

Madam Pang did not accept a suspension of 2 to 4 matches, and only imposed an administrative fine of 40,000-60,000 baht (about 30-45 million VND) for this behavior.

Recently, violence and uncivilized behavior have been a regular occurrence on Thai football fields. Thai players have not only behaved badly in domestic competitions but also in international competitions.

Specifically, in 2023, a Thai U23 player got into a group fight with an Indonesian U23 player in the final match of the 32nd SEA Games. In 2024, Thai star Theerathon Bunmathan attacked his opponent's private area in the Asian Cup.

In early 2025, Supachok played in an unsportsmanlike manner in the second leg of the 2024 AFF Cup final between Thailand and the Vietnamese team, causing protests from the football world ...

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/hinh-anh-khong-dep-o-bong-da-thai-lan-cau-thu-dam-trong-tai-va-doi-thu-20250303151311961.htm