Football Association of Thailand (FAT) Disciplinary and Ethics Committee has imposed a four-match ban and a fine of THB10,000 on Naphakorn Chumyen, a club photographer of Pathumthani University FC, following an incident involving match officials in the BYD DOLPHIN League III(Thai League 3) 2025/26 (Central Zone).
The sanction stems from Pathumthani University’s away match against Futera United on January 10, where Naphakorn was found to have displayed inappropriate and abusive behaviour towards the first assistant referee in the technical area.
According to the official match commissioner’s report, the incident occurred in the 90+4th minute when Naphakorn, who was positioned behind the advertising boards while carrying out his photography duties, confronted the assistant referee and questioned a decision by shouting: “Why didn’t you flag for offside?” Despite being told that the play was not offside, he continued to protest persistently.
The assistant referee subsequently informed the match referee, who issued a yellow card to Naphakorn. The situation escalated further as the photographer reacted angrily, using offensive, inappropriate and insulting language toward the officials. This prompted the referee to issue a red card.
However, complications arose as Naphakorn was registered under a Team Official accreditation but was not listed among the authorised personnel allowed in the technical area. As a result, the red card could not be officially recorded in the match system, leading organisers to forward the full incident report to the FAT Disciplinary and Ethics Committee for further action.
After reviewing the case, the committee found Naphakorn guilty of verbal abuse using obscene language under the FA’s disciplinary regulations (Chapter 3, Section 2, Article 2.6). The base punishment of a two-match suspension and a THB20,000 fine was doubled, as the offence was committed against a match official.
However, since the incident occurred in Thai League 3, the financial penalty was reduced to one-quarter of the original fine, resulting in a final sanction of a four-match suspension and a THB10,000 fine.
The ruling serves as a firm reminder from the Thai FA that all team personnel — including non-playing staff — are expected to uphold discipline and respect match officials, regardless of their role or accreditation.
Credit Photo : AIS Play
