Worldwide sanctions imposed on three more

Zurich, Oct 24, 2013: Following the worldwide extension of sanctions imposed on 16 El Salvador players earlier this month, FIFA can today confirm the extension of sanctions imposed on three additional El Salvador players relating to match-manipulation investigations.

The three players have received a six-month ban, a 12-month ban and a five-year ban from all football-related activities respectively.

The chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has decided to extend the sanctions to have worldwide effect in accordance with article 78 paragraph 1(c) and article 136ff of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. The concerned parties were notified of the decision today.

The Disciplinary Committee of the El Salvador FA decided to impose the sanctions on 9 October 2013. This followed investigations conducted by the El Salvador FA into incidents of match manipulation that occurred in international matches, including friendlies and CONCACAF Gold Cup matches, of the El Salvador national “A” team in 2010, as well as matches involving the El Salvador U-20 national team.

FIFA continues to work closely with its member associations and the confederations to tackle match manipulation. As part of a ten-year programme of collaboration with INTERPOL, regional workshops involving key stakeholders are being held all over the world while recently launched e-learning programmes are also helping to educate players, coaches and referees on the dangers of match manipulation to help them to avoid becoming victims of this threat to football integrity.

Other initiatives include the signing of an integrity declaration by officials, the monitoring of the betting market via FIFA’s subsidiary Early Warning System (EWS) and the setting up of an e-learning ethics tool, an integrity hotline and e-mail address, and a confidential reporting system.

Liberia sanctioned for fielding ineligible player

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the Liberia Football Association (L.F.A.) for fielding an ineligible player in the preliminary competition match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ between Angola and Liberia played on 7 September 2013.

The match is declared to be forfeited and awarded 3-0 in favour of Angola, with the L.F.A. also receiving a fine of CHF 6,000 after the Disciplinary Committee considered the association liable for having breached art. 55 par. 1 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and art. 8 of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ Regulations.

The sanction relates to the Liberian player Nathaniel Sherman failing to serve the automatic one-match suspension imposed on him following two cautions received in two different matches (art. 17 par. 3 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code).

The decision of the Disciplinary Committee has in no way affected the ranking of the teams in Group J of the African Zone qualifiers since the original result of the match was 4-1 in favour of Angola. Both teams also had no chance of advancing to round three of the qualifiers after Senegal finished four points clear of Uganda at the top of Group J. The L.F.A. has been duly notified of the decision today. —- FIFA