FIFA has deducted three points from South Africa in the ongoing 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
The world football governing body confirmed this on Monday.
It is punishment for Bafana Bafana fielding Teboho Mokoena, who was ineligible to face Lesotho in March.
South Africa have also seen three goals deducted from their tally by FIFA.
An official statement read: ‘The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the South African Football Association (SAFA) for having fielded an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, in the South Africa v. Lesotho match played on 21 March 2025 in the FIFA World Cup 2026™ preliminary competition, thereby breaching article 19 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC) and article 14 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 M Preliminary Competition Regulations’
Consequently, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has declared the match in question to have been forfeited by the representative team of South Africa by a score of 3-0. SAFA has also been ordered to pay a fine of CHF 10,000 to FIFA, while Teboho Mokoena has been issued with a warning.
‘The parties were notified of the terms of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee’s decision today. In accordance with the relevant provisions of the FDC, they have ten days in which to request a motivated decision, which, if requested, would subsequently be published on legal.fifa.com. The forfeiture decision remains subject to a potential appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee’.
This represents a significant boost for the Super Eagles of Nigeria, who still harbour hopes of playing at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Hugo Broos’ men who were top of Group C with 17 points from eight games, will now drop to second spot behind Benin Republic.
Bafana will now take on Zimbabwe and Rwanda to finish off the qualification campaign, while Benin face Rwanda and third-place Nigeria in their final two qualifiers. The Super Eagles will face Lesotho and Benin in October.
The latest development has now thrown the group wide open ahead of the final round of qualifiers, with the top four teams standing a chance of picking the ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.
