"We have received the decision of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee on our petition, but we are not satisfied with the decision, which rejected our petition. I want to assure Nigerians that the NFF has immediately commenced the process of appealing the decision."
"Nigeria's complaint, which was joined by Cameroon in a separate petition, alleged that between six and nine players used by Congo DR during the qualifying series improperly switched international allegiances. The NFF argued those players had not relinquished their European passports as required under Congolese law, which does not recognize dual citizenship."
"The Congolese rules say you cannot have dual nationality. There are so many of them that have European passports, some of them French passports, some of them Dutch passports. The rules are very clear."
Nigeria's Football Federation protested Congo DR's use of ineligible players in their African World Cup playoff match, which Congo DR won 4-3 on penalties in November. Nigeria alleged that six to nine Congo DR players improperly switched international allegiances and retained European passports, violating Congolese law prohibiting dual citizenship. FIFA's Disciplinary Committee rejected the protest, but Nigeria immediately initiated an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The outcome remains uncertain before Congo DR's scheduled intercontinental playoff match on March 31, where a World Cup berth is at stake.
#fifa-disciplinary-committee #player-eligibility #world-cup-playoffs #international-football-dispute #court-of-arbitration-for-sport
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