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World cup qualifiers: South Africa lose three points, goals after FIFA’s sanctions

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Countries in Group C of the 2026 World Cup African qualifying series may have been offered a new life after world football governing body, FIFA, sanctioned South Africa for fielding an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, in a game against Lesotho.
 

The world body, in its verdict, deducted three points and three goals from South Africa’s tally for breaching the rules. The Bafana Bafana fielded Mokoena in their game against Lesotho on March 21, 2025, when the midfielder was expected to observe a one-game ban after copping two yellow cards in previous games.

FIFA, on Monday, ruled that the South Africans breached Article 19 of its Disciplinary Code (FDC) and Article 14 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Preliminary Competition Regulations.

The football Governing body declared the match in question to have been forfeited by the representative team of South Africa by a score of 3-0. FIFA also fined the South African Football Association (SAFA) CHF 10, 000, while it warned Mokoena to always play by the rules.

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In the notification to South Africa and the parties in Group C, including Nigeria, Benin Republic, Lesotho and Zimbabwe, FIFA said that in accordance with the relevant provisions of the FDC, South Africa “has 10 days in which to request a motivated decision, which, if requested, would subsequently be published on legal.fifa.com.

“The forfeiture decision remains subject to a potential appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee.” FIFA’s decision means that South Africa, which was leading Group C with 17 points, now has 14 points and are placed second behind Benin Republic, which also have 14 points, but leads the group on superior goals difference.

Nigeria and Rwanda are third and fourth on 11 points each, while Lesotho and Zimbabwe follow with nine and four points respectively.

With two matches to go, South Africa may still pick the Group C ticket to the World Cup if they win their last two games against Zimbabwe and Rwanda, just as the Benin Republic will qualify for their first World Cup if they beat Rwanda and Nigeria. In these scenarios, both Benin Republic and South Africa will end on 20 points, meaning that goal difference would decide the ticket.

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Nigeria’s chance of making the 2026 Mundial rests on South Africa and the Benin Republic dropping points in the two games, while Nigeria beat Lesotho and the Benin Republic in their last games.The African qualifying series resumes on October 6 with Nigeria travelling to South Africa to meet Lesotho.

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WrestleMania 42: Nigerian wrestler Oba Femi beats 10-time WWE Champion Brock Lesnar

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Nigerian professional wrestler, Isaac Odugbesan, popularly known as Oba Femi, defeated 10-time WWE Champion, Brock Lesnar, on his WrestleMania debut on Sunday.

The clash, one of the headline matches at WrestleMania 42, ended on a dramatic note as the 27-year-old Nigerian overpowered the veteran.

Lesnar left his wrestling gear in the ring after the match — a gesture widely regarded in professional wrestling as a sign of retirement.

Oba Femi, also known as “The Ruler,” is a former NXT champion and has spent just three months on WWE’s main roster.

The contest began with both wrestlers testing each other’s strength before Lesnar briefly seized control with a series of offensive moves.

However, Femi absorbed the pressure and responded with a dominant display, shifting momentum in his favour.

Lesnar delivered an F5, but Femi quickly recovered, hitting a chokeslam before finishing the contest with his “Fall From Grace” sit-out powerbomb for the pinfall victory.

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The bout quickly became a major talking point on social media, with fans reacting to the upset win.

Femi, a former shot put athlete, is a two-time NXT Champion and a one-time NXT North American Champion.

Born in Lagos, Odugbesan competed in track and field during his school years before signing with WWE in 2021 through its NIL programme.

He went on to win the 2023 NXT Men’s Breakout Tournament and the 2024 Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge.

During the WrestleMania Sunday post-show, Femi sent a message to Roman Reigns, popularly known as the “Original Tribal Chief,” drawing a loud reaction from fans as he hinted at a possible title challenge before the end of the year.

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BREAKING: CAF overturns Afcon final result, declares Morocco winner

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The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has overturned the result of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations finals and declare MOROCCO the winner of the title.

Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 in the final on 18 January in a match which was overshadowed when the Senegalese players refused to play after the hosts were awarded a stoppage-time penalty with the match goalless.

Following a delay of around 17 minutes, the players did eventually return and Brahim Diaz’s penalty was saved before Senegal’s Pape Gueye scored an extra-time winner.

However, that result has now been overturned by CAF.

A statement by the African Football’s Governing Body said that Senegal are “declared to have forfeited the final match” with the “result of the match being recorded as 3-0 in favour” of Morocco.

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FG  fulfils promises as D’Tigress receive national honours, house documents

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The Federal Government has fulfilled its outstanding promises to the senior women’s national basketball team, D’Tigress, delivering National Honour certificates and title documents for houses in Abuja.

The presentation took place in Lyon, where the African Champions are currently participating  at  the FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifying Tournament.

The move follows a directive from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu aimed at clearing a backlog of promises made to the team following their 2023 Afrobasket victory in Kigali, Rwanda.

The Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Shehu Dikko, led the delegation alongside the Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade. Speaking during the handover, Dikko characterized the prompt delivery as a “clear departure” from previous administrations, where state-promised rewards often faced multi-year delays.

“This is a prompt fulfilment of promises made by a President who leads with action,” Dikko stated. “Mr. President is giving every Nigerian athlete a renewed confidence that sports is a serious business capable of changing lives.”

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While the physical assets (housing and honours) have been delivered, the NSC Chairman confirmed that the cash rewards promised to the squad are currently in the final stages of administrative processing. He assured the players that disbursement into their respective bank accounts is imminent.

The Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade, noted that the current administration of President Tinubu  is institutionalizing a “reward system” modelled after developed sporting nations to ensure high-performance outcomes.

President of Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Engr. Musa Kida, credited the Presidency for prioritizing athlete welfare, citing it as a “legacy of a lifetime” for the sports sector.

Head Coach Rena Wakama and Captain Amy Okonkwo formally accepted the documents, affirming that the timely delivery of these incentives would serve as a catalyst for the team’s upcoming international qualifiers.

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