February 5 – English Premier League club West Ham have been fined 100,000 Swiss francs and reprimanded by FIFA but have avoided being thrown out of the domestic FA Cup after fielding Senegalese striker Diafra Sakho just 18 days after he withdrew from his country’s Africa Cup of Nations squad.
Sakho scored in an 1-0 FA cup victory at Bristol City prompting FIFA to open an investigation to see if rules had been breached over international duty requirements following complaints from Senegalese officials and a backlash from fans.
West Ham said Sakho was unfit to fly to Africa and vigorously denied any wrongdoing. Under its rules, Fifa could have requested the English Football Association reverse the result of the fourth-round cup result and throw West Ham out but went for a lesser penalty after a disciplinary committee found the club and the player to have violated its regulations.