Lionel Messi was  shown the red card after clashing with Gary Medel and afterwards alleged that the tournament had been fixed in favour of the hosts Brazil, who beat Argentina in a controversial semi-final on their way to claiming the title.

Messi called the South American football Confederation (CONMEBOL) “corrupt” and did not attend the ceremony to collect his medal.

CONMEBOL said on Tuesday that Messi’s comments have been “unacceptable” however backed down from imposing a tougher sanction at the five-times global player of the 12 months.

The ban is predicted to be served in Argentina’s first qualifier for the 2022 World Cup.

In another Argentina-related decision on Tuesday, CONMEBOL removed the head of the Argentine Football association's Claudio Tapia as their official representative at FIFA.

Tapia additionally sharply criticized CONMEBOL during and after the Copa America.