A football referee in Brazil was beheaded by a mob after he stabbed a player to death over his refusal to leave the field.

Police in northern Brazil said one man had been arrested after the incident during a local league match in the town of Pio XII.

Referee Octavio da Silva, 20, stabbed player Josenir dos Santos, 30, on June 30 after dos Santos got embroiled in a physical confrontation and refused to leave, police said. The amateur player died while being taken to hospital.

Outraged fans then stormed the field and stoned the referee before severing his head and putting it on a stake in the middle of the ground.

Almost 50,000 people were murdered in Brazil in 2010 and the country is under pressure to show it is a safe place to visit ahead of next year's World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games

Brazilians have taken to the streets this month in the biggest protests in 20 years, some violent, to protest the $14 billion being spent on the World Cup preparations and poor public services.