Zurich (dpa) – After a complaint from the Chilean Football Association about doubts about the origin of the Ecuadorian national player Byron Castillo, the world association FIFA has initiated disciplinary proceedings.
The associations involved were asked to comment on the allegations to the Disciplinary Committee, FIFA said. According to the Chileans, Castillo was not eligible to play during the qualifying phase for the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
According to the Chilean federation, Castillo is said to have given false information about his place and date of birth. The Barcelona SC Guayaquil right-back was born in Colombia and not in Ecuador. In addition, he is actually three years older than stated.
Apparently, Chile’s complaint is aimed at having FIFA count the eight World Cup qualifiers in which Castillo was involved as victories for Ecuador’s respective opponents. This could mean that Ecuador could lose its place at the World Cup and Chile could move up.
The actual origin of Castillo has been debated for years. Finally, in 2021, the Ecuadorian judiciary ordered Castillo to be issued a new birth certificate with his place of birth in Ecuador. Only then was he called up for the national squad for the World Cup qualifiers.