South Africa face points deduction after fielding unqualified player in Lesotho game

South Africa risk losing three points in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers after fielding an ineligible player in their win over Lesotho on Friday, March 21, 2025.
Bafana Bafana fielded Teboho Mokoena, who was supposed to be ineligible for the game due to accumulated yellow cards.
Mokoena played 83 minutes in the game against Lesotho, helping South Africa secure a 2-1 victory at FNB Stadium.
However, it appears that the Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder was ineligible for the match after receiving two yellow cards in the team’s previous games against Benin Republic and Zimbabwe in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
The accumulated yellow cards are in line with FIFA rules, which state: “If players or team officials receive two cautions in one match (in matches decided by penalties) or in two different matches of the competition, they will be automatically suspended from their team’s subsequent match.”
Meanwhile, if Mokoena’s ineligibility is confirmed, a points deduction will only take effect if Nigeria or Lesotho file a protest within 24 hours of the game.
“Protests regarding the eligibility of players selected for matches in the preliminary competition shall be submitted in writing to the FIFA Match Commissioner within two hours of the match in question and followed up with a full written report, including a copy of the original protest, to be submitted to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee in accordance with the applicable provisions of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and by email to mailto:[email protected] within 24 hours of the end of the match. Otherwise, they will be disregarded,” FIFA laws state.
At the moment, it is unconfirmed whether Nigeria, Lesotho, Benin, or Zimbabwe have already filed a protest or not.
South Africa lead the group with 10 points after five games, Benin are second with 8 points, Rwanda sit third with 7 points, Nigeria are fourth with 6, Lesotho occupy the 5th position with 5 points, and Zimbabwe sit at the bottom with 3 points.