Player Eligibility and Switching National Teams: Case Studies & General Discussion

Discussion in 'FIFA and Tournaments' started by Nico Limmat, Jun 21, 2012.

  1. Rickdog

    Rickdog Member+

    Jun 16, 2010
    Santiago, Chile
    Club:
    CD Colo Colo
    Nat'l Team:
    Chile
    #526 Rickdog, Dec 20, 2016
    Last edited: Dec 20, 2016
    yep, that too.


    http://www.insideworldfootball.com/...-lifts-chile-level-argentina-2018-qualifiers/


    In Cabrera's case, he not only didn't have the 5 years of continuous residency, but also he was already capped for Paraguay.

    Bolivia's FA, on their own defence on the case, has insisted that the 5 year residence requirement is something that was not quite clear, as according to them in some FIFA papers and documents, it talks about only 2 years (to certain point, although wrong, this was debatable). What was undeniable though, was the fact Cabrera already had played for Paraguay before and never filed the one time switch, under FIFA' authority.
     
  2. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    wow... i wonder what that means in regard of mongolia which lost the prequalifiers against them.

    they might plea at CAS, that they ve been illegally robbed from contending in AFC Qualifier Group A.
     
  3. rooboy91

    rooboy91 Member

    Apr 25, 2007
    Perth, Australia
    Club:
    Perth Glory
    Nat'l Team:
    Australia
    They had the opportunity to make a complaint after their game. They didn't do that, so that would be the end of their case.
     
  4. Gibraldo

    Gibraldo Member+

    radnicki nis
    Serbia
    Nov 17, 2005
    Club:
    FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
    I understand that complaints must be raised immediately, but if AFC or FIFA weight a match with 0-3 as forfeit, this has an impact on tables and standings and the "table of 2" in the head to head vs mongolia would have had then mongolia being first and advancing to AFC group A
     
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  5. deejay

    deejay Member+

    Feb 14, 2000
    Tarpon Springs, FL
    Club:
    Jorge Wilstermann
    Nat'l Team:
    Bolivia
    #531 deejay, Feb 1, 2017
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2017
    The term "one-time switch" is only for a player with a cap-tying FIFA youth tournament. They can file a one time switch but only if he was eligible for both nationalities at the time of the tournament.

    If a player has only played friendlies they are not cap-tied even if that was his only nationality at that date. He is still free to play for another country once he gets that nationality. However, the second country might want to make sure and have FIFA verify that he only played friendlies. This was what Spain did for Diego Costa (http://futbol.as.com/futbol/2013/09/25/seleccion/1380129055_899810.html). This is the smart thing to do given the complex residency requirements that are in the new rules.
     
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  6. Rickdog

    Rickdog Member+

    Jun 16, 2010
    Santiago, Chile
    Club:
    CD Colo Colo
    Nat'l Team:
    Chile
    #532 Rickdog, Feb 2, 2017
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2017
    You have a small confussion.

    Youth level players don't require to have apply to the "one time switch" rule, as youth players can play for whichever teams they may hold certain allegiance to. The only requirement that FIFA puts in their cases, is that they must not play any competition or specific tournament at the same level, for 2 diferent teams, but whenever they change from one level to the next, they can change teams, as they wish. There are lots of players where while they were young players, they played for diferent NT's, at diferent age levels (some, inclusively could have played at the same level for 2 diferent teams, but on diferent tournaments).

    The cap-tie rule is restricted to senior level type of players, whom have played in any competition, being their last cap for any team, the one that counts for them (also the last youth level one, in an official competition).

    Contrary to most belief, some friendly matches, also does cap-tie players to the teams they played for, as most friendly matches are still, official A-level matches, only that this competition is restricted to the same match. Once the match finishes, the competition will have finished as well. And the number one rule concerning switch of players between diferent associations, is that players must never play for diferent teams in the same competition. Meaning that by only filing the switch to FIFA, with FIFA's aproval, the player can switch to a new team with no problem.

    In the case of Diego Costa, he never played at any youth level games for Brazil, and what in certain way cap-tied him to Brazil, was the fact he 1st was born there, and secondly that he had played a couple of friendly A-level matches for them, but as they were only friendly games, he could perfectly apply for the one time switch rule, by filing his case to FIFA, which the Spain FA did all perfectly accordingly to the rule book.

    In the case of Cabrera, he got cap-tied to Paraguay once he played for them in a friendly official A-level match at senior level, and one of the reasons (there were other issues as well) why he was unelegible to play for Bolivia is that the Bolivian FA, never filed his switch to FIFA.
     
  7. rooboy91

    rooboy91 Member

    Apr 25, 2007
    Perth, Australia
    Club:
    Perth Glory
    Nat'l Team:
    Australia
    Going to CAS now won't change any of that.
     
  8. Nico Limmat

    Nico Limmat Member+

    Oct 24, 1999
    Dubai, UAE
    Club:
    Grasshopper Club Zürich
    Nat'l Team:
    Switzerland
  9. BostonRed

    BostonRed Member+

    Oct 9, 2011
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    New England Revolution
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Well, it's not unheard of.

    Alphonso Davies played at least 3 youth friendlies for Canada in 2016, when he only became a Canadian citizen yesterday.
    https://www.whitecapsfc.com/post/2016/12/13/davies-named-canadian-u-17-player-year


    I'm sure most countries aren't going to protest eligibility for a youth friendly. I'm not sure if FIFA would bother to punish.
     
  10. Sebsasour

    Sebsasour Member+

    New Mexico United
    May 26, 2012
    Albuquerque NM
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
  11. rooboy91

    rooboy91 Member

    Apr 25, 2007
    Perth, Australia
    Club:
    Perth Glory
    Nat'l Team:
    Australia
    Easier to translate.
     
  12. Nico Limmat

    Nico Limmat Member+

    Oct 24, 1999
    Dubai, UAE
    Club:
    Grasshopper Club Zürich
    Nat'l Team:
    Switzerland
    I know - for friendlies. Hence my question. According to Wiki he has eleven youth appearances for Turkey. That's not a small number.

    In any case, Demirbay handled this whole situation poorly and should have better informed himself. The whole "feeling Turkish" bit in the leaked letter will turn some German fans against him from the get-go.
     
  13. Nico Limmat

    Nico Limmat Member+

    Oct 24, 1999
    Dubai, UAE
    Club:
    Grasshopper Club Zürich
    Nat'l Team:
    Switzerland
  14. HomietheClown

    HomietheClown Member+

    Dusselheim FC 1971
    Sep 4, 2010
    Club:
    --other--
  15. BostonRed

    BostonRed Member+

    Oct 9, 2011
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    New England Revolution
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    An interesting case involving French Guiana, a non-FIFA member, and the Gold Cup:

    https://www.si.com/planet-futbol/20...a-french-guiana-gold-cup-france-concacaf-fifa

    Malouda’s potential participation has been reported by media outlets throughout the Americas and in France, which he represented 80 times at the senior level. Most recently a member of Indian club Delhi Dynamos, [Florent] Malouda joined French Guiana in time for last month’s conclusion of the Caribbean Cup in Martinique. There, the Guianans won bronze and qualified for the Gold Cup for the first time. And Malouda played twice.

    It was believed Malouda, who was born in the Guianan capital of Cayenne, could participate because the Ligue de Football de la Guyane isn’t a FIFA member. Therefore, he wouldn’t be breaking the rules by turning out for another FIFA nation after becoming cap-tied to France. CONCACAF counts several such countries, including fellow 2017 Gold Cup qualifier Martinique and 2007 Gold Cup Cinderella Guadeloupe, among its members. Their teams can compete for continental honors but can’t enter the World Cup because they're each technically overseas departments of France.

    FIFA theoretically would’ve been O.K. with Malouda playing this month. The Gold Cup isn't their tournament. But CONCACAF isn’t O.K. with it, and the key can be found in section XV. a. of the Gold Cup regulations. It reads:

    "Each participating Member Association shall select its national representative team from the best players who are nationals of its country and under its jurisdiction, and are eligible for selection in accordance with the provisions of the applicable FIFA Regulations."

    That last clause is the issue. Although Malouda can appear for French Guiana because it isn’t in FIFA, CONCACAF chooses to conduct its biennial championship according to FIFA's eligibility guidelines. Malouda is cap-tied to France in FIFA competition and since the Gold Cup is contested under the same rules, he's unable to play for anyone but Les Bleus in either.

    And this is where this gets weird. As the spokesperson said, Malouda can play. CONCACAF can't physically stop him from taking the field. It can only rule the game a forfeit if he does.
     
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  16. Sebsasour

    Sebsasour Member+

    New Mexico United
    May 26, 2012
    Albuquerque NM
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Unless they got some kind of promise that's damn weird. It's always inexplicable how often teams field ineligible players. At least in this case they have 24 hours notice
     
  17. HomietheClown

    HomietheClown Member+

    Dusselheim FC 1971
    Sep 4, 2010
    Club:
    --other--
    What makes it even weirder to me is that Jocelyn Angloma was able to captain Guadeloupe within the 2007 Gold Cup tournament despite playing for France.

    Has this CONCACAF rule always been in place and just not been enforced? Or was it added recently?
     
  18. BostonRed

    BostonRed Member+

    Oct 9, 2011
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    New England Revolution
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    This article says the rules have changed:

    http://beta.goal.com/en/news/france...e-for-concacaf-gold/8rsaked610xp1w9fh5tunp1zr

    In previous tournaments, players who had not represented another national team for five years were eligible for selection, with Martinique fielding Jocelyn Angloma at the 2007 tournament after the defender won nearly 40 caps with France between 1990-1996. Martinique, which has the same political and FIFA status as French Guiana, had former Bordeaux and West Ham winger Julien Faubert on its provisional roster. But the one-time France player was left off the final squad.

    In contrast to 2007, a rule tweak indicating players taking part must be "eligible for selection in accordance with the provisions of the applicable FIFA regulations," is now in the tournament regulations. The same wording appears in the 2015 rules, a slight update from 2013's requirement that names a specific FIFA statute.

    "In 2017, 10 years later, the rules are in place. The player eligibility rules are those of FIFA, meaning that a player who is cap-tied to another national team isn't going to be able to play at the Gold Cup for another tam in CONCACAF," the spokesperson said.
     
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  19. HomietheClown

    HomietheClown Member+

    Dusselheim FC 1971
    Sep 4, 2010
    Club:
    --other--
    I just saw that in the USA forum too.

    Sucks for those Islands/ depatments now but rules are rules.
     
  20. BostonRed

    BostonRed Member+

    Oct 9, 2011
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    New England Revolution
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The interesting thing is that a player who is provisionally tied to another country can't play for one of these countries, even if never fully cap-tied, and can't do a one-time switch because FIFA doesn't recognize the non-member country. I supposed CONCACAF could grant a waiver if they wished.
     
  21. HomietheClown

    HomietheClown Member+

    Dusselheim FC 1971
    Sep 4, 2010
    Club:
    --other--
    Each participating Member Association shall select its national representative team from the best players who are nationals of its country and under its jurisdiction, and are eligible for selection in accordance with the provisions of the applicable FIFA Regulations.

    Couldn't a good lawyer say that since French Guyana is not a Country the rule does not apply to them?
    Technically they are a department of a Country which he represented in Official matches.
     
  22. deejay

    deejay Member+

    Feb 14, 2000
    Tarpon Springs, FL
    Club:
    Jorge Wilstermann
    Nat'l Team:
    Bolivia
    Kenny received attention from us about two years ago. He preferred to wait to play for the Israeli NT but has barely gotten two friendly call ups. Now I don't know the situation for that team but he seems good enough to play for them. I don't blame him for being a little peeved.
     
  23. Boandlkramer

    Boandlkramer Member+

    Apr 9, 2009
    Samma Weltmeister!
    Club:
    FC Bayern München
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Gee...does he expect to play?

    #notmycoach

    https://www.si.com/soccer/2013/03/21/bruce-arena-us-national-team

    http://ftw.usatoday.com/2016/11/us-...-national-american-foreign-born-usmnt-players
     
  24. HomietheClown

    HomietheClown Member+

    Dusselheim FC 1971
    Sep 4, 2010
    Club:
    --other--
    Arena started players who were born in other countries many times.

    One of my favorites was Colombian- American Carlos Llamosa.
     

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