Emilio Nsue and Equatorial Guinea appeal Fifa eligibility ruling

Both Emilio Nsue and Equatorial Guinea’s football federation (Feguifut) have filed separate appeals against Fifa’s ruling in May that the 34-year-old has never been eligible to play for the African nation.

There was widespread shock when Fifa stated that Nsue, the top scorer at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations, had been playing international football without approval since 2013.

On top of a six-month international ban for the player, who Fifa adjudges to be Spanish, football’s world governing body fined the Equatoguinean federation $164,000 (£127,000) and deducted points from 2026 World Cup qualifiers Nsue had played in.

“Our player and captain Emilio Nsue is an Equatoguinean in his own right,” Venancio Tomas Ndong Micha, Feguifut president, told BBC Sport Africa.

“The federation and population do not understand why we’re going through what we’re going through.

“He has his family here in Equatorial Guinea, the country of his father, and we think we will win our appeal. I hope Fifa will deliver justice.”

In its ruling, Fifa said it was “comfortably satisfied” that Nsue was ineligible for “several” internationals, but specifically awarded technical 3-0 wins to Namibia and Liberia.

Both sides had lost World Cup qualifiers 1-0 last November, with Nsue scoring the winner on each occasion.

Equatorial Guinea’s record scorer with 22 goals, Nsue had previously been ruled ineligible by Fifa in 2013 after his first two appearances for the African side, to whom he wished to transfer his allegiance after playing for Spain at youth level.

Fifa did not approve the nationality switch after adjudging that he did not have Equatoguinean nationality when he first played for Spain in 2005, something that was a technical requirement at the time.

Nonetheless, Feguifut started fielding him again in late 2013, with Nsue being a regular fixture in the side ever since, contesting World Cup qualifiers for the 2018, 2022 and now the 2026 finals as well as appearing at three Nations Cups.

Eligibility Row

Ndong Micha believes that Fifa did not take his country’s constitution into account when deciding that Nsue did not have Equatoguinean nationality when he first turned out for Spain.

“The decision greatly surprised us (the federation), the whole nation and the player in particular,” he said. “It’s a worry for the whole country because we’re a small nation doing our utmost to achieve the successes we are having.

“Our constitution says that you are Equatoguinean if your mother or father are from Equatorial Guinea. So, based on our constitution, Emilio is 100% Equatoguinean, owing to his Equatoguinean father.”

Players can represent a national team if their mother or father was born on the territory of the relevant association, meaning Nsue, who was born in Spain in 1989, thought he could play for Equatorial Guinea since his father was born in the nation of just under two million people.

In addition, Ndong Micha says that Nsue held an Equatoguinean passport even before he first played for Spain’s youth teams.

Nonetheless, the fact remains that, even if he is ultimately found eligible to play for Equatorial Guinea, the federation still fielded him in over 40 games since Fifa’s ruling of 2013.

“We’re hopeful the appeals will be successful, that they will declare Emilio eligible, that the fine will disappear and that the points will be reinstated,” Paolo Torchetti, the legal representative for both Nsue and Feguifut, told the BBC.

“This case is important both symbolically and practically for Feguifut. Having Emilio compete for 2026 and the points reinstated is very important for the federation to develop the game in Equatorial Guinea, as it would be a massive achievement to qualify for the next World Cup.”

World Cup dreams on hold

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES

Image caption: Despite Fifa’s July 2013 ruling that Nsue (right) was ineligible, he resumed his Equatorial Guinea career five months later – ironically when facing Spain, who he represented at youth level

The loss of six points would be a major blow to the National Thunder’s chances of reaching the 2026 World Cup finals in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

They had been second in Group H, behind leaders Tunisia on goal difference alone, but now drop to fifth in the six-team group after the six-point deduction.

Group winners qualify automatically, with the second-placed side entering the play-offs.

“The news arrived like a bucket of cold water, especially given our extraordinary start to the 2026 World Cup qualifying,” Ndong Micha said of his reaction in May.

Having started the group with those back-to-back wins, the team then had to play their next two qualifiers in June without the suspended Nsue, losing 1-0 in Tunisia before beating Malawi 1-0 on home soil.

Ndong Micha is particularly keen to know why Fifa have taken action now and who may have complained, saying he does not believe it is a Group H rival.

“Understanding who complained is the million-dollar question,” pondered the Feguifut president. “One day I would really like to know who created this drama for us.”

Fifa has confirmed receipt of both appeals but said there was no specific timeline on a decision.

Meanwhile, a stay of execution – whereby Nsue is eligible to play and the fine is suspended “pending final outcome of dispute” – has been requested.

Should they fail with Fifa, both Nsue and federation can make one final appeal to sport’s highest legal body, the Court of Arbitration for Sport.