FIFA lawyers said Burkina Faso should have reached 2026 World Cup play-off

An investigation by Le Monde and The New York Times has raised fresh questions over the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

Internal documents seen by Le Monde indicate that FIFA’s legal experts considered Democratic Republic of the Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi ineligible for several African qualifying matches.

Mpasi began a process in 2021 to change his sporting nationality from France to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but the documents reportedly state that the procedure was never completed.

The goalkeeper, who represented France at youth level, including at the 2011 U17 World Cup, nevertheless played in a number of qualifying matches for the Leopards.

FIFA’s lawyers identified four matches involving Mpasi that could have breached the eligibility regulations. Their assessment could have had significant consequences for the qualification standings and Burkina Faso’s hopes of reaching the finals.

“This disrupts the whole 2026 World Cup qualification process for the African region: Burkina Faso (and not the Democratic Republic of the Congo) would have qualified for the African play-off,” the lawyers wrote in documents seen by Le Monde.

Despite that conclusion, the Democratic Republic of the Congo was not given a sporting sanction.

FIFA said a complaint submitted by the Nigerian Federation had been declared inadmissible because of procedural issues and the expiry of the relevant deadline. The decision became final because no appeal was lodged.

The governing body also rejected any suggestion that its president, Gianni Infantino, had intervened in disciplinary proceedings.

The findings have renewed scrutiny of how FIFA’s eligibility rules are applied. They could also prompt further debate in Burkina Faso, where the documents suggest the outcome of the African qualification process might have been different had the regulations been enforced.

The case centres on whether Mpasi’s change of sporting affiliation from France to the Democratic Republic of the Congo was legally completed before he appeared in the qualifiers. While FIFA’s legal department apparently believed that it had not been, the absence of a successful formal challenge meant the result remained unchanged.

As a consequence, the Democratic Republic of the Congo retained its qualification position, while Burkina Faso did not take the place that FIFA’s lawyers said it would have secured under their interpretation of the rules.