A team is at risk of being disqualified by FIFA in the World Cup qualifiers.

(Dan Tri) - The South African team is at risk of being disqualified by FIFA and losing its ticket to the 2026 World Cup for using players in violation of regulations.

In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Africa, the South African team is emerging as a strong candidate to win a ticket to the World Cup when it tops Group C with 17 points after 8 matches, 3 points more than Benin and 6 points ahead of Nigeria and Rwanda.

South Africa (yellow shirt) is at risk of having 3 points deducted in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in the African region (Photo: Getty).

As per the rules, only the group winners qualify automatically. So South Africa are on the verge of qualifying for the World Cup for the first time since 2010, when they hosted the tournament. However, their hopes are in serious jeopardy.

According to The Athletic, South Africa fielded an ineligible player in their 2-0 win over Lesotho in March. Midfielder Teboho Mokoena was still registered to play despite having received two yellow cards in qualifying, which means he will be banned for one match under FIFA regulations.

South African Football Association (SAFA) President Lydia Monyepao confirmed that she had received a notification from FIFA: “We are preparing a response to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, which is a mandatory requirement of the SAFA.”

South Africa used an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, in the match against Lesotho (Photo: Goal).

If found guilty, South Africa could be handed a 3-0 loss. FIFA's disciplinary rules state: "If a team fields an ineligible player, the match will be awarded a 3-0 loss, unless the actual result was more unfavourable to the offending team."

In this scenario, Group C will become extremely unpredictable as South Africa loses its advantage and is caught up by Benin in terms of points. Meanwhile, Rwanda and Nigeria are only 3 points behind the group leaders. That could make the ticket to the tournament in the US, Canada and Mexico fall into a fierce tug-of-war in the final two rounds.

South Africa return to qualifying next month against Zimbabwe and are anxiously awaiting FIFA's decision in the coming days.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/mot-doi-tuyen-co-nguy-co-bi-fifa-xu-thua-o-vong-loai-world-cup-20250924184011124.htm