A World Cup legal dispute flared Thursday with Chile challenging Ecuador’s place at the finals tournament over an alleged ineligible player. (More Football News)
The Chilean soccer federation asked FIFA to investigate it📖s claim that Ecuador player Byron Castillo is actually Colombian and not entitled to have played in qualifying games.
The complaint comes more t🦄han one month after South American qualifying ended and Ecuador was drawn into a group with host nation Qatar, the Netherlands and Senegal.
“FIFA can confirm that it has received a formal complaint from the Chilean FA in relation to this matter,” soccer’s governing ꦯbody said in a statement.
FIFA gave no timetable for a possible disciplinary case ahead of the World Cup kicking🌞 off Nov. 21.
Ecuador placed fourth in the 10-nation South American qualifying group to advance directly to Qatar. Fifth-place Peru has a playoff g🐎ame next month against Australia or the United Arab Emirates.
Chile placed seventh, seven points behind Ecuado🌟r, but argues it could advance if games involving Castillo were forfeited.
The FIFA rules in cases of ineligib♛le꧟ players require results to be overturned as a 3-0 loss.
Chile has now filed complaints against an opponent’s player in back-to-back World Cup ꦐqualifying programs.
In South American qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, Bolivia forfeited two games in which it fielded an ineligible player as a late substitute. FIFA had received complaints from Chile aꦛnd Peru about Bolivia defender Nelson Cabrera, who was born in Paraguay and had previously played for Paraguay’s national team.
Bolivia lost an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport which said FIFA was right to investigate even when protests were filed weeks ﷺafter the games were played. That case ultimately harmed Chile. Three extra points awarded to Peru lifted it a🍒bove Chile to enter an intercontinental playoff that it won.
FIFA wrote stricter rul꧅es for the 2022 World Cup requiring all play♔ers in qualifying games to produce a “valid permanent international passport” for inspection by match officials.
