FIFA: Brazil, Argentina Face Disciplinary Sanction

FIFA has opened disciplinary proceedings against Brazil and Argentina after their suspended World Cup game on Sunday.

Following Sunday’s controversy in Brazil, FIFA on Monday promised to take disciplinary actions based on the report it received from the officials assigned to the match.

The world football governing body revealed that the ongoing legal procedures are the reason it could not provide specifics on the alleged rule breaches or give a comment on whether it could also have been partly culpable, along with South American confederation CONMEBOL, for the saga that led to the game being halted.

Also, FIFA did not specify which regulations the football federations from Argentina and Brazil were being investigated for breaching.

“Following the analysis of the official match reports related to the FIFA World Cup qualifier match between Brazil and Argentina, FIFA can confirm that disciplinary proceedings have been opened involving both member associations,” FIFA said in a statement on Tuesday.

“The two teams were asked to provide further information on the facts that led to the suspension of the match, which will be gathered and then thoroughly reviewed by FIFA’s disciplinary committee.”

Meanwhile, FIFA itself could be partly culpable too given that the organisers of the qualifier which appointed the match delegates, whose role is to oversee that regulations are being adhered to, should’ve noticed the infraction in Argentina’s squad for the match, hence disallowing the match to kickoff.

CONMEBOL could also come under scrutiny after a Brazilian health ministry document sent to the organization’s president Alejandro Dominguez said a final request for a quarantine exemption was rejected for the EPL quartet Emiliano Martinez, Emiliano Buendia, Giovanni Lo Celso, and Cristian Romero.