Lionel Messi was shown the first red card of his Barcelona career after he lashed out at the end of Sunday's 3-2 defeat to Athletic Club in extra time.
Near the end of the Spanish Super Cup final, Messi played a pass and took a swing at Asier Villalibre as the Athletic forward ran across his path.
The referee missed the incident at first but upon a VAR review, he showed Messi a straight red card for violent conduct.
It was the first red card Messi has ever received as a Barcelona player, coming in his 753rd appearance for the club.
The incident capped another frustrating episode in the Catalans' season as they were unable to close out the silverware, having twice led.
Antoine Griezmann continued his recent revival by finding the net twice only for Oscar de Marcos and Asier Villalibre to reply for the Basques. Indeed, their second equaliser came in the 90th minute of the game.
In extra-time, Iniaki Williams struck before Messi saw red late on.
The 33-year-old, who has won the Ballon d'Or on a record six occasions, had previously turned out 753 times for the Camp Nou side without being dismissed.
It was not, however, the first red card of the attacker's career. He has been dismissed for Argentine on two occasions, including famously on his international debut, which lasted just a minute before he was sent off as a substitute.
His other red card came in the Copa America third-fourth play-off of 2019, when he was dismissed when captain of his side. Despite his absence, Argentina won 2-1.
Messi, meanwhile, has been frustrated with life at Barcelona in recent months, having admitted that he has had a desire to leave the club. One of the reasons cited is their lack of competitiveness.
This, then, is a further blow to Barca's hopes of keeping the veteran forward, whose contract is up in June, meaning that he is able to negotiate terms with other clubs. Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are thought to be particularly interested in him.
