LAGOS SEPTEMBER 29TH (NEWSRNAGERS)- Nigeria breathes sigh of relief as hope of qualifying for 2026 World cup comes alive.
This is because the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has penalised the South African Football Association (SAFA) for fielding an ineligible midfielder Teboho Mokoena in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Lesotho.
FIFA found out after the match played on 21 March 2025, as part of the preliminary qualification rounds for the tournament, that SAFA violated Article 19 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and Article 14 of the 2026 World Cup preliminary competition regulations by selecting Mokoena, who was not eligible to play.
For this, FIFA awarded a 3-0 forfeit victory to Lesotho, and imposed a fine of 10,000 Swiss francs (approximately £9,000) on SAFA.
The global football control body also issued Mokoena a formal warning.
In an official statement released on Monday, FIFA confirmed that all relevant parties had been informed of the decision.
“The parties were notified of the terms of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee’s decision today,” the statement read.
According to FIFA, in line with the FIFA Disciplinary Code, the parties involved have ten days to request the details of the decision. It said, “In accordance with the relevant provisions of the FDC, they have ten days in which to request a motivated decision, which, if requested, would subsequently be published on legal.fifa.com. The forfeiture decision remains subject to a potential appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee.”
The forfeiture remains subject to a possible appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee.
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