The standoff between FIFA and the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) ended with the Caribbean country joining a long list of others suspended after various disputes with their parent association.
Oftentimes, the reasons nations find themselves blacklisted by the sport’s global governing body are many and varied, but the outcome is often the same.
The twin-island republic becomes the second Caribbean nation suspended by FIFA, following in the footsteps of Antigua and Barbuda who were banned in 2003 for one year, after infighting broke out within the association.
In each case, the length of suspension dished out to the associations varies widely, with the ball often in the member association court as to how long it takes to rectify the affair that has caused them to fall afoul of FIFA’s statues in the first place. The list below features 24 countries that have been suspended in the last 17 years and some of the reasons provided.
List of country’s suspended
Country - Azerbaijan
Date - 15 April 2003 - 23 May 2003
Reason - External pressure, violations of
fundamental principles
Outcome - Parties agreed to respect a FIFA
moderated agreement
Country - Antigua and
Barbuda
Date - 20 May 2003 - 29 June 2005
Reason - Non-specified
Outcome- Suspension lifted after situation
had improved
Country - Guatemala
Date - 9 Jan. 2004 - 17 May 2004
Reason - Governmental interference: FA and
elected FA officials replaced
Outcome - Re-installment of elected FA
leadership, recognition of FAs’
competencies
Country - Kenya
Date - 2 June 2004 - 6 Aug. 2004
Reason - Governmental interference: FA
officials replaced due to
mismanagement and fraud
Outcome - Installment of a normalization
committee to improve
transparency and accountability
Country – Macau
Date - 15 Feb. 2005 - 6 March 2005
Reason - Governmental interference:
Non-specified
Outcome - Suspension lifted after
negotiations
Country -Yemen
Date -12 Aug. 2005 - 9 Nov. 2005
Reason - Governmental interference:
Non-specified
Outcome - Suspension lifted after concessions
by the government
Country - Greece
Date - 3 July 2006 - 12 July 2006
Reason - Governmental interference: National
legislation granting professional
league independence from FA
was not revoked
Outcome - Legislation amended according to
FIFA’s demands
Country - Kenya
Date - 25 Oct. 2006 - 9 March 2007
Reason - Governmental interference:
Non-implementation of
agreements, escalation of
internal conflicts
Outcome - Government agrees to abstain
from further intervention, legal
proceedings are withdrawn,
reinstallation of elected officials
Country – Iran
Date- 23 Nov. 2006 - 20 Dec. 2006
Reason - Governmental interference:
Non-independence of
decision-making and election
processes
Outcome - Implementation of FIFA’s
demands
Country - Kuwait
Date - 29 Oct. 2007 - 20 Dec. 2008
Reason - Governmental interference: FA
officials replaced
Outcome - Suspension provisionally lifted
after new elections are
announced, reinstallation of
FIFA’s transition committee,
amendment of FA’s statutes
Country - Albania
Date -14 March 2008 - 26 April 2008
Reason - Governmental interference:
Government initiated legal
proceedings against new FA
statutes
Outcome - Legal proceedings stopped,
creation of a working-group
Country - Madagascar
Date - 19 March 2008 - 19 May 2008 Governmental interference:
Ministerial decree dissolved FA
Outcome - Madagascan Supreme Court
declared decree null and void,
re-installment of FA
Country - Chad
Date - 28 March 2008 - 7 May 2008
Reason - Governmental interference:
Government replaced FA
officials and intended to hold
new elections
Outcome - Decree revoked, reinstallation of
elected FA officials
Country - Iraq
Date - 26 May 2008 - 29 May 2008
Reason - Governmental interference:
Governmental decree dissolved
all sport organizations
Outcome - Exclusion of FA from dissolution
decree
Country – Ethiopia
Date - 29 July 2008 – July 22 2009
Reason - Governmental interference:
Dismissal of elected officials,
non-compliance with FIFA
roadmap
Outcome - New leaders elected for the country's soccer federation.
Country – Samoa
Date - 24 Oct. 2008 - 20 Dec. 2008
Reason -Repeated management problems
Outcome - Resolved
Country - Peru
Date - 25 Nov. 2008 - 20 Dec. 2008
Reason -Governmental interference:
Non-specified
Outcome- Resolved
Country - Brunei Darussalam
Date -29 Sept. 2009 - 1 June 2011 Governmental interference:
Dissolution of FA and creation
of new government-controlled
body
Outcome - FIFA’s conditions fulfilled and
statues amended according to
FIFA Statutes
Country - Iraq
Date - 20 Nov. 2009 - 19 March 2010
Reason - Governmental interference: Government
controlled NOC dissolved FA
Outcome - Dissolution of FA withdrawn
Country - El Salvador
Date - 11 May 2010 - 27 May 2010
Reason - Governmental interference: Government
did not accept FIFA’s normalization
committee and new FA statutes
Outcome - Legitimacy of normalization
committee and new statutes
recognized
Country – Nigeria
Date - 4 Oct. 2010 - 8 Oct. 2010
Reason - Governmental interference: Court actions
against FA officials, government
forced resignation of officials,
government started league without
relegation from previous season
Outcome - Suspension provisionally lifted
after claimant withdrew legal
actions and FA leadership and
FA control over league were
reinstalled
Country – Bosnia
Date -1 April 2011 1 - Jun 2011
Reason - Mismanagement due to ethnic
divisions
Outcome - FA statutes amended according to
FIFA’s demands
Country - Belize
17 June 2011 7- July 2011
Reason - Failure of government to provide
security for national team matches
Outcome - Suspension provisionally lifted
due to positive developments,
match played outside Belize
Country – Cameroon
Date - 4 July 2013 - 22 July 2013
Reason - Governmental interference: Government refused to accept results of FA
elections
Outcome - New elections organized, finally
reinstallation of elected FA officials
Country – Nigeria
Jul 9, 2014 - Jul 18, 2014
Reason – Government interference:
Court proceedings and an order preventing the president of the NFF, the NFF executive committee members, and the NFF Congress from running the affairs of Nigerian football
Outcome – Orders rescinded
Country – Kuwait
Date - Oct 16, 2015 - Dec 6, 2017
Reason – Government interference
Outcome – Gulf state's parliament adopted a law meant to end government interference in the sport.
Country - Guatemala
Date – Oct 28, 2016 - May 31, 2018
Reason – Government interference: Local authorities had intervened with Normalisation Committee
Outcome – Normalisation Committee recognized
Country - Sierra Leone
Date - Oct 5, 2018 - Jun 3, 2019
Reason - Government interference.
Third-party interference in the running of the country's FA.
Outcome – Resolved
Country – Trinidad and Tobago
Date – September 24, 2020 – Unknown
Reason – Refusal to acknowledge normalisation committee by the previous board. Issue was taken to High Court.
Outcome - Unknown