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‘FIFA Aware DR Congo Fielded Ineligible Player Against Nigeria In W/Cup Qualifier’ — New York Times Investigation Claims

World football governing body, FIFA, has been accused of knowing that DR Congo used an ineligible player in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying playoff against Nigeria’s Super Eagles. According to an investigation by New York Times published Tuesday, the player at the centre is goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi, the French-born Le Havre keeper who went

— Complete Sports, publisher's words · Read the original ↗

13 outlets8 languages10 countriesUpdated

Who broke it

Le Monde — Sport

FR · FR

Followed by

12

outlets in 8 languages over 13 h 21 min.

Our read

Corroborated (7)

7 of 10 outlets each added at least one detail no earlier report had; the other 3 repeat it. That is independence, not agreement: two of them can still contradict each other.

Judged on the 10 outlets in our latest edition; the timeline keeps all 13 we have seen.

Coverage timeline

13 outlets · first-seen order
  1. +0 min

    Le Monde — SportFR · FRBroke it

    Comment la FIFA a contourné son règlement pour favoriser la qualification de la République démocratique du Congo à la Coupe du monde 2026

  2. +3 h 37 min

    SportmediasetIT · ITOwn reporting

    Fifa, nuovi guai per Infantino: "Rd Congo al Mondiale con portiere ineggibile"

  3. +4 h 55 min

    L'Équipe — FootballFR · FROwn reporting

    La FIFA aurait fermé les yeux sur l'inéligibilité d'un joueur, susceptible d'empêcher la RD Congo de participer à la Coupe du monde 2026

  4. +7 h 9 min

    RMC Sport — FootballFR · FRRepeats

    Un incroyable coup de pouce de la Fifa: pourquoi la RD Congo n'aurait pas dû participer à la Coupe du monde 2026

  5. +7 h 14 min

    Complete SportsEN · NGOwn reporting

    ‘FIFA Aware DR Congo Fielded Ineligible Player Against Nigeria In W/Cup Qualifier’ — New York Times Investigation Claims

  6. +7 h 44 min

    DH Les SportsFR · BEOwn reporting

    Nouvelle enquête à charge contre la FIFA : Infantino a-t-il joué un rôle pour garder le Congo à la Coupe du monde malgré l’inéligibilité d’un joueur ?

  7. +8 h 26 min

    Estadao EsportesPT · BROwn reporting

    Fifa sabia e deixou jogador irregular atuar nas eliminatórias e Copa do Mundo, revela jornal

  8. +9 h 11 min

    MarcaES · ESRepeats

    El portero de RD Congo, rival de Colombia en el Mundial, jugó sin tener los papeles en regla

  9. +9 h 15 min

    Mundo Deportivo — FútbolES · ESOwn reporting

    Escándalo: la FIFA habría ocultado una alineación indebida de RD Congo

  10. +9 h 23 min

    Hürriyet — SporTR · TRRepeats

    FIFA'dan skandal karar! Dünya Kupası'nda oynadı, itiraz geldi

  11. +9 h 53 min

    Gazeta SporturilorRO · ROOwn reporting

    Alt abuz după „scandalul Balogun”. Ar fi jucat ilegal la Mondial! » „Infantino l-a protejat pentru realegerea sa”

  12. +13 h 19 min

    Nu.nl VoetbalNL · NLOwn reporting

    FIFA liet niet-speelgerechtigde Congolese keeper ondanks klacht op WK spelen

  13. +13 h 21 min

    GhanaSoccerNetEN · GHRepeats

    FIFA faces scrutiny over DR Congo goalkeeper eligibility claims

First seen is our own clock across 245+ feeds; it is not a guarantee of who published first. Each time is the earlier of the publisher's own timestamp and our first sighting. Headlines and summaries are the publishers' own words, linked to the original. How we work out who broke it.