FIFA clears Emilio Nsue to play for Equatorial Guinea after 12-year wait

Equatorial Guinea’s all-time top scorer, Emilio Nsue, has finally been granted official clearance by FIFA to represent the country, more than a decade after making his senior debut for the African nation.

The decision comes after FIFA controversially ruled Nsue ineligible in May 2023, suspending him for six months and annulling Equatorial Guinea’s 2026 World Cup qualifying victories over Namibia and Liberia. FIFA claimed that the former Spain youth international had never completed the formal process of switching his allegiance.

However, on Wednesday, the global football body approved a fresh request from the Equatorial Guinean Football Federation (Feguifut), 12 years after its initial application.

“FIFA’s decision is a great victory for us and for the people of Equatorial Guinea,” Feguifut president Venancio Tomas Ndong Micha told BBC Sport Africa. “After so many years and months of effort, we have been able to prove that Emilio was eligible, and finally, justice has prevailed.”

Nsue, 35, has long been a crucial figure for the Nzalang Nacional, captaining the team and scoring a record 22 goals.

His six-month suspension last year disrupted Equatorial Guinea’s World Cup campaign and cost Feguifut a hefty 150,000 Swiss franc ($164,000) fine, which was later reduced to 50,000 francs, with the remainder suspended for two years.

Expressing his relief, Nsue said: “I am overjoyed to be back with my national team and to compete for the flag and people of Equatorial Guinea. Now, it is time to focus on our upcoming qualification matches for the 2026 World Cup, and hopefully, we can make every Equatoguinean proud.”