The South African Football Association (SAFA) have announced their intention to appeal FIFA’s decision to deduct three points from the country’s tally in the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Football’s world governing body, FIFA, announced that South Africa’s National Men’s Football Team had forfeited its qualification game against Lesotho (3-0) and been fined 9,000 Pounds Sterling for fielding an unqualified player (Teboho Mokoena) in their game played on March 21, 2025.
As a result, South Africa’s points tally have dropped from 17 to 14 indirectly lowering their chances of qualifying to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
In the wake of the announcement, SAFA released a statement indicating the body’s intent to appeal the decision within the allocated period.
“As SAFA, we are deeply disappointed with this unprecedented outcome noting that it was delivered by a single-member panel without reasons, and without affording the Association an opportunity to present legal arguments.”
“The Association confirms that we have requested written reasons for the judgment and intend to lodge a formal appeal with the FIFA Appeals Committee” a section of the release said.
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