FIFA has officially announced the Democratic Republic of Congo as one of the six teams to feature in the final play-off tournament for the 2026 FIFA World Cup amid Nigeria’s protest against the African play-offs winners.
DR Congo are included as one of the six teams in a statement sent to journalists applying for accreditation for the play-off tournament, with no clarity on the status of the Nigeria Football Federation’s case for the Super Eagles.
“All of the six teams have now been decided, with Bolivia, Congo DR, Iraq, Jamaica, New Caledonia and Suriname confirmed as qualifiers,” FIFA stated.
The global football body noted that the FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off Tournament will run from March 26 to March 31, 2026 and will determine the final two qualification slots for the expanded tournament to be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.
The play-off matches will be staged in Guadalajara and Monterrey, Mexico.
Under the format released by FIFA, the four lowest-ranked teams in the world ranking, Bolivia, Jamaica, New Caledonia and Suriname, will compete in bracket semi-finals on March 26.
The two highest-ranked teams, Congo DR and Iraq, have been granted automatic passage to the bracket finals. The winners of those finals will secure the last two tickets to the 2026 World Cup.
The development leaves the Super Eagles in uncertain terrain, without clarity on the fate of the NFF’s legal challenge.
In December 2025, the NFF formally petitioned FIFA, alleging that DR Congo breached player eligibility rules during the African play-offs, during which the Super Eagles lost on penalties to the East Africans.
The Congolese side defeated the Super Eagles 4-3 in a shootout in November in Morocco, a result that ended Nigeria’s direct route to the intercontinental play-off.
However, Nigerian football authorities alleged that between six and nine DR Congo players might have violated domestic constitutional provisions that prohibit dual citizenship.
The NFF argued that while the players possessed valid Congolese passports and were cleared under FIFA statutes, they might not have complied with DR Congo’s constitutional requirement prohibiting dual nationality.
The NFF insisted that the Congolese constitution did not permit dual citizenship and that this formed the crux of Nigeria’s petition.
NFF General Secretary Dr Mohammed Sanusi had also confirmed that the federation submitted documents to FIFA, arguing that the world football body may have been misled into clearing the players.
With barely three weeks to the play-offs, FIFA is yet to announce a ruling on the case.
