By Ayobami Okerinde The International Federation of Association Football, FIFA, knew that the Democratic Republic of Congo had fielded an ineligible player but allowed the team to continue its World Cup qualification campaign, an investigation by The New York Times has revealed.
According to the report published Tuesday, FIFA’s own legal officials had privately determined that Congo had breached player eligibility rules after goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi failed to complete the required documentation to switch his international affiliation from France, where he had represented youth teams. Despite the finding, FIFA allowed Mpasi to continue playing, and Congo went on to defeat Jamaica in March to secure its first World Cup appearance in 52 years.
The development has raised fresh questions over FIFA’s handling of Nigeria’s complaint against Congo, which came after the Central African side defeated the Super Eagles on penalties in the African play-off final in November 2025. The defeat condemned Nigeria to a second consecutive World Cup miss, after also missing out on the 2022 edition in Qatar.
In December 2025, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) lodged a complaint with FIFA alleging that Congo had fielded players who were not properly eligible to represent the country. The NFF’s complaint questioned the clearance of several foreign-born players, including Mpasi, and alleged that the Congolese federation had misled FIFA in securing their eligibility.
Documents and correspondence reviewed by The New York Times, alongside information from a senior official directly involved in the case, showed that FIFA officials had considered several possible sanctions against Congo, including awarding the match to Nigeria, imposing fines, replacing Congo with Nigeria in the play-off against Jamaica or taking no action on the grounds that Nigeria had filed its complaint late.
Under FIFA rules, fielding an ineligible player can result in a team forfeiting the match in