The Court of Arbitration
for Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeal of the Sudanese Football Association
(SFA) against the FIFA decision to declare the Sudan-Zambia match of 2 June
2012 forfeited by Sudan 0-3. The CAS has fully confirmed the FIFA Appeal
Committee’s decision of 24 October 2012.
On 2 June 2012, during a qualifying match
for the FIFA World Cup 2014, Africa zone, Sudan played Zambia in Khartoum and
won the match 2-0. On that day, the Sudanese team had fielded the player Eldin
Ali Idris Farah while he was under suspension. Such player had been sent off in
the last game of the Sudan in the context of the African Cup of Nations (CAN)
on 4 February 2012, a match where the Sudan also played Zambia.
Following the match on 2 June 2012, the
FIFA Disciplinary Commission opened a procedure against the SFA and ordered
that the match of 2 June 2012 be forfeited by Sudan 0-3 and that the SFA pay a
fine of CHF 6'000. This decision was upheld by the FIFA Appeal Committee on 24 October
2012.
The SFA appealed such decision to CAS on 3
December 2012, requesting its annulment, on the basis that it had not been
properly informed of Eldin Ali Idris Farah’s suspension. The CAS Panel in
charge of this case rejected the arguments of the SFA after noting that the
secretariat of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) had indeed informed
the SFA that the player Eldin Ali Idris Farah would be suspended during the
next official match of the national team. The CAS also noted that, following
the sending off of the player in the last game of the CAN, the SFA couldn’t not
be aware of the fact that the player in question was suspended, and, in case of
doubt, it should have verified the player’s eligibility with the competent FIFA
and/or CAF authorities.
Consequently, the decision of FIFA to
declare the Sudan-Zambia match of 2 June 2012 forfeited 0-3 is confirmed.
Press release HERE
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten