Reports dropping Tuesday are painting a wild picture: FIFA knew Congo’s goalkeeper, Lionel Mpasi, was flat-out ineligible for crucial World Cup qualifying games, but still let him play in the actual tournament. This isn’t some backroom whisper; The New York Times and French daily Le Monde are citing internal FIFA documents that put the soccer body’s disciplinary processes under serious scrutiny, especially with President Gianni Infantino already facing heat after the Folarin Balogun furor.
The Ineligibility Mess That Sent Congo to the World Cup
Mpasi, a 32-year-old goalie, was a France Under-17 international who, according to these reports, never completed the official FIFA process to switch his national eligibility to Congo, despite his family ties there. And yet, this dude played in a whopping five qualifiers in the past year. Think about that for a second: five games where he shouldn’t have been on the pitch. These weren’t just any games, either. We’re talking about an African playoff win over Nigeria last November and an intercontinental playoff victory against Jamaica in March. Those two wins, powered by an ineligible player, are what sent Congo to their first World Cup in 52 years.
You bet Nigeria wasn’t happy, and they formally complained to FIFA about Congo allegedly breaking rules with player passports. But here’s where it gets even crazier: internal documents from FIFA’s own investigation show their disciplinary lawyers noted Mpasi hadn’t had formal approval from the governing body since he was first called up in 2021. The options drafted by these officials were wild, including letting Nigeria replace Congo to play Jamaica, or simply dismissing Nigeria’s complaint because it was filed too late.
FIFA’s Decision and The Bitter Taste Left Behind
So, what did FIFA do? Their disciplinary committee declared Nigeria’s protest “inadmissible” in early March 2026, citing a late filing. And because no “proper appeal” was lodged, that decision became “final and binding.” FIFA, for its part, “strongly rejects any suggestion that the FIFA President would interfere with these processes,” but it’s hard to ignore the stench when their own documents, cited by Le Monde, noted that defaulting Congo’s qualifying results where Mpasi played would have sent Burkina Faso into the African playoffs instead.
Let’s not forget the precedent: in 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Bolivia defaulted two games for fielding an ineligible player. And FIFA’s own disciplinary code states they “may act ex officio,” meaning they have the power to take on a case without even needing a formal complaint. But for Mpasi, who had a “standout display” in Congo’s 2-1 loss to England in the World Cup Round of 32 and even played in their 1-1 draw against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal, nothing happened. He played all four of Congo’s games at the tournament, despite the lingering shadow of his ineligibility.
The timing of these reports is wild too. They dropped just a day before officials from Congo, Nigeria, and Burkina Faso are all set to attend a three-day summit of the 54-member Confederation of African Football (CAF) in Cape Verde. FIFA President Infantino is expected to be there. You know those conversations are gonna be spicy.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bleacher Report.
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