The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned South African Football Association (SAFA) for fielding an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, during the 2026 FIFA World Cup preliminary qualifier match between South Africa and Lesotho on March 21, 2025.

The world football governing body said SAFA’s action breached Article 19 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and Article 14 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Preliminary Competition Regulations.
It consequently said the match has been forfeited in favour of Lesotho, with a 3-0 scoreline awarded.

FIFA in addition to the three points’ deduction, fine SAFA, while Mokoena himself has received an official warning.
Under FIFA rules, SAFA has ten days to request a detailed, motivated decision, which would subsequently be published on legal.fifa.com.
The ruling remains subject to appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee.

Hugo Broos’ men currently sit at the top of their World Cup qualification Group C, having collected 17 points from eight games.
Bafana Bafana had a three-point gap to second-placed Benin, but have now been overtaken by the Squirrels after their 2-0 win against Lesotho was written off and resulted as 0-3 due to the administrative error