FIFA officials knew that the Democratic Republic of Congo had fielded an ineligible player during its World Cup qualification campaign but allowed the team to continue competing, according to an investigation by The New York Times.
The report, published Tuesday, said FIFA’s legal officials had privately determined that goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi had not completed the required process to change his international affiliation from France, where he had represented the country at youth level.
Despite the finding, Mpasi continued to play for Congo as the team progressed through the qualification campaign.
Congo eventually defeated Jamaica in March to secure a place at the World Cup, earning the country its first appearance at the tournament in 52 years.
The revelation has raised fresh questions over FIFA’s handling of a complaint filed by the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, after Congo eliminated the Super Eagles from the African play-offs in November 2025.
Nigeria lost the decisive match on penalties, missing out on the World Cup for a second successive tournament after failing to qualify for Qatar 2022.
The NFF lodged a formal complaint with FIFA in December 2025, questioning the eligibility of several Congo players born outside the country, including Mpasi. The federation also alleged that Congolese football authorities had misled FIFA while securing the players’ clearance.
According to documents reviewed by The New York Times and a senior official familiar with the case, FIFA considered several possible responses. These reportedly included awarding Nigeria the match, imposing financial sanctions on Congo, replacing Congo with Nigeria in the play-off against Jamaica or taking no action because Nigeria’s complaint was filed late.
The report said FIFA ultimately did not remove Congo from the qualification campaign, despite its legal officials having identified concerns surrounding Mpasi’s eligibility.
That decision has drawn attention because FIFA has previously sanctioned teams for similar violations. Greece, for example, was ordered to forfeit a 2016 match after fielding an ineligible player who had represented Australia at youth level. Bolivia also lost the results of two World Cup qualifiers in 2018 after fielding a player who had previously represented Paraguay.
Former NFF president Ibrahim Musa Gusau told The New York Times that he was informed Nigeria’s complaint had been rejected on technical grounds but said he was never told that FIFA had identified a problem with Mpasi’s eligibility.
The report has also raised questions about FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s relationship with African football officials. Véron Mosengo-Omba, described as an Infantino ally, was preparing to contest for the presidency of the Congolese football federation while FIFA was reviewing the eligibility case.
Mosengo-Omba later became the sole candidate and was elected president after eight other contenders withdrew or were disqualified following changes to eligibility rules.
He denied knowledge of FIFA’s findings concerning Mpasi.
Meanwhile, CONCACAF called for eligibility complaints to be thoroughly reviewed where they could affect competition integrity or the interests of member associations.
The revelations are likely to intensify scrutiny of FIFA’s handling of Nigeria’s complaint and the circumstances surrounding Congo’s qualification for the World Cup.
