World Governing body FIFA has officially discarded Guyana’s appeal against the entity’s Disciplinary Committee for not reprimanding St. Vincent and the Grenadines for allegedly fielding an ineligible player during their 2018 World Cup Qualifiers.
According to a press release from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), “The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has denied the Guyana Football Federation’s (GFF) appeal against the Disciplinary Committee’s ruling that no further action would be taken against the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Football Federation for allegedly fielding an ineligible player during World Cup 2018 qualification matches”.
The release further said “The world’s governing body for football cited its decision on technical and procedural grounds reiterating that Guyana was not `a party to the relevant proceedings before the FIFA Disciplinary Committee and would therefore not be eligible to appeal’.
“FIFA further added that an appeal was lodged against a letter issued on 29 July by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee and not against a decision of the Committee. The GFF will explore all options on how to proceed with the matter and is currently seeking legal guidance”, the document added.
The GFF officially filed a letter of appeal to the FIFA Appeals Committee following the latter’s decision not to sanction St. Vincent and the Grenadines for allegedly fielding an ineligible player during their World Cup Qualifiers.
Guyana had initially filed a complaint against the Vincentians for allegedly fielding an ineligible player after their June 14th second leg matchup following their first round elimination via the away goal regulation.
The Golden Jaguars were eliminated after their two-legged affair finished 6-6 on aggregate following a 4-4 draw at the National Stadium on June 14th in the second encounter. In the opening match at the Arnos Vale Stadium in St Vincent and the Grenadines, the score ended 2-2.
The GFF had stated that the Vincentians violated FIFA’s regulation regarding eligibility of individuals. FIFA’s rules for the 2018 World Cup states that passports are the only official documentation that can prove the nationality of a competing player.
The contentious player was British-born Garvin James who allegedly is not a holder of a Vincentian passport. Due to this regulation, Guyana wrote to FIFA regarding the alleged breach by the Vincentians in hopes of sealing a place in the next round via the technicality.
