с ним неправильно (не по правилам) обошлись в/на штрафной площадка

А че не добавили?

Это, скорее, объяснение, чем перевод.
Fouled - явно жаргон, box - тоже. А русский жаргон я не знаю

С ним грубанули в штрафной зоне.

The BOX is an 18-yard box near the team's goal. If you're FOULED, you do something illegal and are taken out of the game.

У меня была мысль, что это может ознать и это (можно сказать, противоположное).
Однако, не любой foul означает удаление с поля - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fouls_and_misconduct_(association_football)

Read under “What is a Penalty in Soccer?”: https://coachingkidz.com/the-complete-guide-to-fouls-and-penalties-in-soccer/

Hmm...
"After a foul is called, the fouled player/team is given a set-piece or “free kick” from the spot of the foul."
As I read this, the fouled = victim of misconduct, and the victim is is given a free kick.
Am I mistaken?

Yes. Think of the FOUL as a traffic ticket given by the referee. The player who receives this ticked is considered FOULED.

Yes - means mistaken?

"free kicks are awarded to the opposing team of a player, ... guilty of an offence" - https://www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/lawsandrules/laws/football-11-11/law-13---free-kicks
This means that the free kick is given/awarded to the victim - correct?
If so, I wasn't mistaken - see the previous quote: "the fouled player/team is given a ... “free kick” "
??

The fouled player isn’t the victim, but the player who committed the offense.

OK, I'm not a football fan and don't know, but I'm not convinced.
https://www.espn.com/soccer/paris-saint-germain--frapsg/story/4600554/paris-saint-germains-neymar-is-most-fouled-player-in-europe-report
Neymar is the most fouled player in the Europe's top leagues...
Neymar Jr. is, actually, the player who most suffers fouls in the main European leagues...
The ace suffered 1040 fouls since 2016...
His father and agent, Neymar Santos, has often demanded more respect for his son from referees to protect him from getting injured unnecessarily.

When you’re fouled, the referee gives you a penalty: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foul_(sports)

Ну, не знаю...

When Roy Keane WAS FOULED, Haaland made fun of him and told him to get up and stop faking the injury.
Another way in which fouls are controversially abused in sport is when players pretend to be fouled by another player.
Referees ... have to make a rash decision on whether or not the player performed a dive or they were legitimately fouled.

Если ты не знаешь, dive - это когда игрок притворяется, что его сбили или что-то в этом роде.

Т.е., как ни крути, мое первое объяснение было правильным (для one player fouled BY ANOTHER PLAYER).

Насчет fouled by a referee не знаю.

Yes, perhaps you’re right. I was thinking more along the lines of a player being fouled by a referee.