Qatar World Cup: Senegal Fined Over Press Conference

Senegal has been hit with an £8,700 fine for breaking FIFA rules ahead of their clash with England in the World Cup knockout stages.

The Senegalese Football Federation found themselves in hot water for their actions before their 2-1 win over Ecuador, which booked their spot in the last 16. Their manager, Aliou Cisse, attended the pre-match press conference without a player from his squad.

FIFA rules state that the day before a game every team must conduct a press conference in one of two press conference rooms at the main media center with the team’s head coach required to attend along with one player from his squad.

After Cisse attended alone, a FIFA statement confirmed they have been hit in the pocket. The statement read: “The Fifa Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the Senegalese Football Federation with a fine in the amount of CHF 10,000 and a warning for breaches of article 44 of the Regulations for the Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022™, article 2.7.2 of the Media and Marketing Regulations and article 8.5.3 of the Team Handbook.

“The potential breaches relate to the mandatory press conference that took place on 28 November ahead of Ecuador v. Senegal Fifa World Cup™ match.”

Senegal is not the only team to take a fine for breaching press conference rules. Germany boss Hansi Flick opted to do the same prior to their clash with Spain earlier in the week and claimed he did not want to force a player into the three-hour round trip to the media centre from their base in the north of Qatar the day before a big match.