Benfica vs Belenenses abandoned after Covid outbreak and injuries
Turned into a chaotic night in the Portuguese league, with Belenenses starting with nine players, falling 7-0 behind, and then seeing the match abandoned early…
Benfica vs Belenenses was abandoned early in the second half on Saturday after the Covid-hit home side were left with only six players on the pitch in Lisbon. Benfica had already led 7-0 at half-time after Belenenses were forced to start with just nine men, including two goalkeepers.
The match quickly became a safety and governance crisis rather than a football contest. A positive test earlier in the week had left Belenenses with 17 cases among players and staff, and the team later lost another player to injury after the restart, triggering the referee’s decision to stop the game.
How the Benfica vs Belenenses match unravelled
Belenenses were already under severe strain before kick-off. Sky Sports reported that the club named only nine players, while BBC Sport said the side had to begin with nine men, including a goalkeeper used as an outfield player. Benfica seized on the mismatch immediately and went into half-time with a 7-0 lead.
After the break, Belenenses returned with seven players, but the situation worsened almost at once. A further injury left them with only six on the field, and the referee abandoned the game because the minimum number of players required was no longer present.
The scene was stark. One goalkeeper had been pushed into midfield. The squad had been shredded by the outbreak. And yet the match still went ahead.
Pressure on the authorities
Benfica president Rui Costa said his side were “forced” to play, adding that the two bodies who could have postponed the game, the league and the Directorate-General for Health, did not do so. He called it “a dark chapter for Portuguese football and for the country itself.”
Belenenses president Rui Pedro Soares also said the club had tried to stop the fixture. On Saturday’s news conference, he said, “In the middle of the afternoon we communicated to the Liga that we didn’t want to play the game.” He added, “Playing here today was a shame for all of us.”
Soares said the club had only eight players available to attend the match and claimed officials told them that if they did not appear it would be an unjustified absence. He also said defender Cafu Phete had tested positive for Covid after returning to Portugal on Thursday from international duty in South Africa.
Why the match mattered beyond Portugal
The fallout reached far beyond one abandoned league fixture. The episode raised immediate questions about the credibility of the competition, the judgment of the league, and the process used to decide whether a match should go ahead during a serious outbreak. Sporting Lisbon, who sat third in the table behind Benfica, issued a sharp statement saying Portuguese football as a whole was “seriously harmed” and that what happened had “serious implications for the credibility of this championship and the institutions that regulate it.”
The club also warned that the case deserved “deep reflection” and national attention. That language reflected how ugly the night had become. This was not just a heavy defeat. It was a public breakdown in competitive balance.
Bernardo Silva, the Manchester City and Portugal midfielder, also weighed in on Twitter while the match was still unfolding. He wrote: “What is this? Am I the only one who doesn't understand why the game hasn't been postponed?”
That reaction cut to the heart of the issue. When one side has nine players at kick-off and then drops to six, the result stops mattering. What remains is the cost of letting the game begin at all. Belenenses had said in a joint statement before kick-off: “Football only has heart if it is competitive. Football only has heart if it is really sporting. Football only has heart when it is an example of public health. Today, football lost its heart.”
Benfica, meanwhile, made the most of the lopsided contest before it was halted. Sky Sports reported Darwin Nunez scored a hat-trick, while the BBC said Benfica averaged 85% possession with the numerical advantage. Even that dominance could not prevent the night from ending in abandonment, and the decision came with one fact impossible to ignore: Belenenses had 17 cases among players and staff before the whistle even blew.
