Nigeria's football federation has filed a complaint with FIFA alleging that DR Congo fielded ineligible players in their recent CAF playoff final. The petition claims fraud in the nationality changes of several players, threatening DR Congo's World Cup qualification hopes. DR Congo has dismissed the challenge as sour grapes from a bad loser.
Nigeria's hopes of reviving their 2026 World Cup qualification chances have been bolstered by a formal petition to FIFA against DR Congo. The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) accuses DR Congo of using ineligible players in last month's CAF Playoffs final in Morocco, where the Leopards edged the Super Eagles 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw on November 16.
The complaint focuses on players who switched international allegiance to DR Congo, including Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Axel Tuanzebe, and Arthur Masuaku, who hold European passports. NFF General Secretary Sanusi Mohammed stated, "Our contention is that FIFA was deceived into clearing them. The Congolese law says you cannot have dual nationality, but some of their players have European and French passports." He added that passports were obtained in just two or three months, breaching regulations.
At least six to nine players are flagged as ineligible due to DR Congo's constitution prohibiting dual citizenship. Cameroon previously raised similar concerns, but DR Congo's federation, FECOFA, rejected the petition outright. In a social media post, they called it an attempt to "win via the back door" and labeled Nigeria "bad losers," emphasizing that the World Cup should be played with dignity, not lawyers' tricks.
FIFA's statutes allow players to change associations once with approval, but require a passport for the new nation. Possible outcomes include dismissal, administrative sanctions like fines, or sporting penalties such as a forfeit. Precedents include Equatorial Guinea's points deduction for an ineligible captain and South Africa's match loss to Lesotho for fielding a suspended player. Cape Verde was disqualified from 2014 playoffs for a similar issue.
DR Congo, under coach Sebastien Desabre, awaits the winner of New Caledonia vs. Jamaica in March's intercontinental playoffs for a spot in Group K with Portugal, Uzbekistan, and Colombia. FIFA has yet to respond, but the case could impact the final African berth.
