Governing Bodies
EUROPE’S WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS IN NUMBERS
The draw for UEFA Zone World Cup qualifying takes place this Monday 7 December. Fifty five teams will be jostling for 13 places.
Ahead of the draw, FIFA.com looks back at some interesting facts and figures from qualifying on the Old Continent.
1904: Seven European teams joined football world governing body FIFA in its founding year: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. England and Italy (both 1905) and reigning world champions France (1908) followed a little later.
80: A total of 807 goals were scored in 278 matches during European World Cup qualifying for Russia 2018 (an average of 2.9 goals per game). This was a slightly higher figure than four years earlier (2.79 goals).
29: The Netherlands hold the record for the most World Cup qualifying goals scored by a European team. The Oranje have also won more World Cup qualifiers than any other European country, with 82 victories from 125 matches.
55: European qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup set a new record with 54 participating teams, a record that will now be broken as 55 set out on the road to Qatar. Russia are the ‘extra’ side in question, having qualified automatically for the 2018 edition as hosts.
55: Italy have never lost a World Cup qualifier in front of a home crowd (46 wins, nine defeats). Overall, Gli Azzurri have only lost nine of their last 109 World Cup qualifying matches.
43: Belgium and Germany both scored 43 goals in ten matches on the road to Russia 2018 (an average of 4.3 goals per game).
30: Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals than any other player in the history of European qualifying (30 goals in 28 matches), finding the target 15 times in qualification for Russia 2018 alone.
22: Almost half of the 55 teams have never qualified for the World Cup finals before.
16: Robert Lewandowski broke the record for the highest-scoring player in a single European World Cup qualifying campaign with his 16 goals for Poland in qualifying for Russia 2018.
10: Germany were the only team to win ten out of ten matches in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup qualifying tournament. No country was able to match this feat in 2014.
10: Montenegro have an identical number of wins (10), draws (10) and defeats (10) from their last 30 World Cup qualifiers.
10: Hungary were the first team to score ten goals in a FIFA World Cup qualifier, beating Greece 11-1 on 25 March 1938.
3: Luxembourg, Portugal and the Republic of Ireland are the only three teams to have participated in all 20 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaigns to date. The road to Qatar 2022 will be their 21st.
4: Four teams made it through 2018 World Cup qualifying unbeaten – Belgium, England, Germany and Spain. Seven teams completed the 2014 campaign without suffering a defeat.
4: Liechtenstein’s 4-0 win over Luxembourg in qualifying for Germany 2006 on 13 October 2004 was the team’s first away win, their first FIFA World Cup qualifying victory and their biggest win of all time.
3: England and Spain boasted the best defensive records in qualifying for Russia 2018, with both conceding just three goals in their ten matches.
2: Gibraltar and Kosovo made their World Cup qualifying debut in their bid to reach Russia 2018. There are no European debutants on the road to Qatar 2022.
1: San Marino secured their first-ever point in World Cup qualifying thanks to a 0-0 draw with Turkey in March 1993. It was their fifth match in the competition. They then took just one more point from their next 61 qualifiers
Governing Bodies
FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Congo officials over financial misconduct
FIFA’s ethics committee launched disciplinary proceedings against three senior Congolese Football Federation (FECOFOOT) officials on Wednesday, including president Jean-Guy Mayolas, over allegations of financial misconduct.
Mayolas, his wife and his son were sentenced to life in prison earlier this month after a criminal court in the Congolese capital, Brazzaville, convicted them of embezzling $1.1 million in FIFA funds. Media reports said their whereabouts were not known , and they were tried in absentia.
FECOFOOT general secretary Wantete Badji and treasurer Raoul Kanda are also subject to the disciplinary proceedings, FIFA said. Badji and Kanda were sentenced to five years each in prison by the court in Brazzaville for related charges.
“These proceedings follow the receipt of information and documents during an audit,” FIFA said in a statement.
-Reuters
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The World Anti-Doping Agency is considering rewriting its rules to try barring President Donald Trump and all U.S. government officials from attending the LA Olympics in 2028, in a move that could also have implications for the World Cup being hosted by the U.S. this summer.
The proposal, on the agenda for next Tuesday’s meeting of the global drug-fighting watchdog’s executive committee, is the latest manoeuvre to come out of a yearslong refusal of the U.S. government to pay its annual dues to WADA.
The refusal is part of the American government’s unanimous, bipartisan protest of the agency’s handling of a case involving Chinese swimmers and other issues.
The Associated Press learned of the agenda item through correspondence it obtained between WADA and European officials involved in the agency’s decision-making. Two others with knowledge of the agenda confirmed the existence of the rules proposal to AP; they were not authorised to speak publicly about the agenda, which has not been released publicly.
The proposal was, in fact, first brought up in 2024, when U.S. authorities successfully lobbied for its rejection. The U.S. has since lost its seat on the executive committee.
“In spite of WADA’s increasing threats, we continue to stand firm in our demand for accountability and transparency from WADA to ensure fair competition in sport,” said Sara Carter, the director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).
The rule, if passed, would figure to be mostly symbolic, given the limits an international sports federation could have on the president of a country attending an event inside his own borders.
“I have never heard of a $50-million-budget Swiss foundation being able to enforce a rule to, for example, prevent the United States president from going anywhere,” said Carter’s predecessor at ONDCP, Rahul Gupta, who was on the WADA executive committee two years ago and led the movement to reject the proposal. “And the next question you have to ask is: How are you going to enforce it? Are they going to post a red notice from Interpol? It’s ludicrous. It’s clear they have not thought this through.”
In a news release after this story published, WADA said the AP story was “entirely misleading,” focusing on Fitzgerald’s statement to the AP that if proposals being discussed were “introduced, given that the rules would not apply retroactively, the FIFA World Cup, LA and Salt Lake City Games (in 2034) would not be covered.”
Fitzgerald’s only answer to three emails from AP seeking clarification on his initial response — specifically about how a rule that had not yet been adopted could or couldn’t be applied retroactively on events that are scheduled for the future — was: “I’m trying to say that it would not apply retroactively so those events would not be covered. Given that and the next meeting of the Board being scheduled for November, I don’t see how it could come into play for this year’s World Cup.”
-AP
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The Confederation of African Football has dismissed Yasin Osman Robleh, the Djiboutian official who headed its judicial bodies for the past six years, in a move aimed at restoring confidence in the organisation’s disciplinary processes.
According to reports from convergence sources, the decision was confirmed on Saturday by CAF Secretary General Veron Mosengo-Omba, bringing an abrupt end to Robleh’s tenure overseeing the confederation’s disciplinary and investigative committees since 2019.
Robleh’s position reportedly came under increasing pressure following the controversy surrounding sanctions imposed after the Africa Cup of Nations Final between Morocco and Senegal. The disciplinary decisions that followed the match sparked criticism from several quarters and placed CAF’s legal framework under intense scrutiny.
In response to the situation, CAF’s Executive Committee has appointed Togolese lawyer Cedric Egai, currently the confederation’s Director of Legal Affairs, as interim head of the judicial bodies.
Egai is expected to stabilise the organisation’s legal arm while CAF works toward appointing a permanent successor to Robleh.
Disciplinary Decisions Delayed
The leadership change has already affected ongoing disciplinary processes within the confederation. CAF’s disciplinary committee reportedly held hearings last Thursday on several cases, including the high-profile encounter involving Egypt’s Al Ahly and Morocco’s AS FAR.
However, decisions on those matters have been temporarily put on hold pending the confirmation of new leadership within the judicial structure.
Sources indicate that once a permanent successor is appointed, CAF will move swiftly to conclude outstanding disciplinary rulings affecting both clubs and national teams.
Restoring Confidence
The move is widely seen as part of CAF’s effort to restore confidence in its judicial system following weeks of controversy surrounding disciplinary decisions at major competitions.
Robleh’s departure closes a significant chapter in CAF’s legal administration, while Egai’s interim appointment signals a potential shift in leadership and governance at a critical time for African football.
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