Rio laments 'ludicrous' ban over tweet

Ferdinand was banned for three games on Wednesday, fined £25,000 and ordered to attend an education programme arranged by the Football Association after a misconduct charge against him was found proven.

The former England captain was found to have posted a message on his Twitter account that was "abusive and/or indecent and/or insulting and/or improper".

In addition, the breach of FA regulations was considered aggravated as the comment included a reference to gender.

QPR have yet to announce whether they will appeal the sanctions against Ferdinand, who is set to miss Premier League contests against Chelsea, Manchester City and Newcastle United.

Ferdinand is clearly unhappy with his ban, however, and outlined his surprise on Friday.

In a fresh tweet, the 35-year-old wrote: "Is humour even allowed....I'm baffled! Ludicrous.... & I don't mean the rapper."

Joey Barton, a team-mate of Ferdinand at QPR, also criticised the severity of the punishment handed out.

"Surely a person has the right to be offensive? Especially if someone offends you? Shambolic that @rioferdy5 misses 3 games and loses £25k," tweeted Barton.