Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution: Are protonated OH-groups ortho-/para- or meta-directing?
O-protonated phenols direct in meta, according to an article on that topic. As it occurs, phenols can be, depending on acid, protonated on oxygen, but also on carbon, and even diprotonated (but not twice on the same atom), when most powerful mixtures of HF and SbF5 are used. O-protonated forms can be brominated, hydroxylated and alkilated. C-protonated forms don't posses such reactivity and are essentially Meisenheimer's complexes.