FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee has penalised the South African Football Association (SAFA) for using an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, in the 2026 FIFA World Cup preliminary qualifier against Lesotho on March 21, 2025.
The world football governing body said SAFA’s action violated Article 19 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and Article 14 of the 2026 World Cup Preliminary Competition Regulations. Consequently, the match has been forfeited in Lesotho’s favour, with a 3-0 victory awarded.
In addition to losing the three points, SAFA was fined 10,000 Swiss francs, while Mokoena received an official warning.
FIFA confirmed that the decision has been formally communicated to the concerned parties, who have ten days to request a detailed explanation. The ruling can be appealed before the FIFA Appeal Committee and will later be published on legal.fifa.com.
Before the sanction, coach Hugo Broos’ side topped Group C of the World Cup qualifiers with 17 points from eight matches. The deduction, however, means Benin now leapfrogs Bafana Bafana into first place after the 2-0 win over Lesotho was overturned to a 3-0 loss due to the administrative error.
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