The USMNT getting a red card at a home World Cup is a nightmare scenario — unless you're a Domino's customer, apparently.
The pizza chain announced a promotion on May 18 that turns every USMNT red card at the 2026 FIFA World Cup into a $1 million giveaway. Sign up for Domino's Rewards online, and if a U.S. player gets sent off during a World Cup match, 60,000 randomly selected members will each receive a free medium two-topping pizza.
"Soccer gurus know the worst thing to happen in a game is for a player on the team you're rooting for to receive a red card," said Kate Trumbull, Domino's EVP and chief marketing officer. "It may not change the outcome of the match, but it can provide a delicious pick-me-up when it's needed most."
How often does this actually happen?
Red cards are rare — but the USMNT has form here. Cast your mind back to the 2006 World Cup group stage match against Italy. Three red cards in a single game. Two of them against the United States. That ended 1-1, which felt like a minor miracle given they played most of it a man down.
With the tournament kicking off on June 12 against Paraguay, and with a squad that includes players like Christian Pulisic — who plays an aggressive, high-contact style — the odds of seeing at least one dismissal across the entire tournament aren't as remote as you'd hope. That's a genuine factor worth considering when looking at USMNT match handicap markets.
There's more to the promotion than just red cards
Domino's has layered in two additional giveaways for good measure:
- A partnership with EA Sports FC — every Friday through June 5, promo codes will be released giving gamers a free medium two-topping pizza. That's 75,000 pizzas in total.
- A capsule clothing collection with soccer boutique Saturdays Football, featuring reimagined kits — including three collar designs and a long-sleeve warm-up kit.
The 2026 World Cup is the second time the United States has hosted the tournament, with matches also being held in Canada and Mexico. Whether the USMNT can avoid the disciplinary chaos of 2006 is another question entirely — but now at least there's a pizza-shaped silver lining if they can't.
