Assim Madibo

Assim Madibo will be remembered as the player whose reckless tackle ended Ismael Kone's 2026 World Cup on 18 June 2026. His challenge in the 53rd minute of Qatar's match against Canada at BC Place initially drew a yellow card, but VAR upgraded the decision to a straight red card after reviewing the contact with Kone's leg. The tackle fractured the Canadian midfielder's Left tibia and fibula, requiring emergency surgery . It became Qatar's second dismissal of the evening, leaving the side with nine men for the remainder of the match.

Madibo, 29, plays as a defensive midfielder for Al-Wakrah in Qatar's domestic league. He is part of a Qatar squad at their second consecutive home-continent World Cup, following the 2022 tournament. Qatar went into the match against Canada already reduced to ten men following Homam Ahmed's dismissal in the first half, and Madibo's red card compounded a disastrous night that ended in a 6-0 defeat .

The incident, one of the most consequential disciplinary events of the group stage, drew widespread condemnation for the Nature of the challenge.