Espérance Sportive de Tunis and Club Sportif Sfaxien have been officially barred from registering new players by FIFA, joining a growing list of Tunisian clubs facing disciplinary action due to unresolved legal disputes.
The sanction was confirmed on Monday, bringing the total number of Tunisian clubs under FIFA-imposed recruitment bans to eleven, spanning 17 separate cases.
These restrictions will remain in place until all outstanding disputes are fully resolved.
According to details provided, the breakdown of cases across the affected clubs is as follows: EGS Gafsa leads with four active files, followed by CS Chebba, Olympique de Béja, and AS Soliman with two each. Club Africain, ES Métlaoui, Etoile du Sahel, US Ben Guerdane, and US Tataouine each have one case pending, as do the newly sanctioned Espérance de Tunis and Club Sportif Sfaxien.
FIFA’s ruling prevents these clubs from making any player signings — both domestically and internationally — until all financial and contractual disputes have been settled to the governing body’s satisfaction.
This latest development marks a significant blow for Espérance and Sfaxien, two of Tunisia’s most storied football institutions.
Both clubs had been preparing for the upcoming season and will now be forced to continue with their current squads, unless they can urgently resolve their cases.
The wider impact on Tunisian football is also considerable.
The collective sanctioning of eleven clubs — nearly half of Tunisia’s top-tier sides — underscores the scale of the administrative and financial challenges currently facing the national game.
Issues typically stem from disputes involving unpaid salaries, transfer fees, and breach of contract claims by former players or staff.
FIFA’s approach remains firm: clubs under sanction will not be allowed to recruit until their individual files are settled in accordance with applicable legal procedures.
As the transfer window progresses, pressure will now mount on the sanctioned clubs to resolve their cases swiftly in order to strengthen their squads before the new season kicks off.
The Tunisian Football Federation has yet to comment on the widespread bans, but observers expect increased scrutiny and calls for structural reforms aimed at preventing such recurring disputes and restoring the integrity of club governance across the league.
