Ivory Coast striker Elye Wahi is having a nightmarish time in the ongoing FIFA World Cup. Why? He is a spot-fixing suspect. He played 55 minutes in Ivory Coast’s 1-0 over Ecuador earlier this week in Philadelphia. The team plays its next game on Saturday night against four-time champions Germany in Toronto, and 23-year-old Wahi was denied entry into Canada — initially, that is.
Last month, he was arrested on suspicion of deliberately earning a yellow card for Nice in Ligue 1, France’s first division. He was released later, and the police didn’t press any charges against him. However, they continue to investigate the case, which means Wahi remains a suspect. The news of his arrest in May broke out after the win against Ecuador and brought him a lot of bad press all over the world.
Anyway, after initially being denied entry, things got better over time for the player after the matter was raised with the authorities concerned, and eventually he was allowed to go to Toronto to feature in his team’s second game.
{{/usCountry}}Anyway, after initially being denied entry, things got better over time for the player after the matter was raised with the authorities concerned, and eventually he was allowed to go to Toronto to feature in his team’s second game.
{{/usCountry}}"The necessary authorisations for his entry into Canadian territory have now been obtained," a statement from FIF (Ivory Coast Football Federation) said.
"As a result, the Ivorian international is authorised to travel with the Elephants' delegation to Canada and will continue his participation in the competition alongside his team-mates as normal.
"The FIF welcomes this positive outcome and thanks the various parties who contributed to handling this matter," it added.
Quite murky!
So, what happened was that Nice played a league game against Metz on May 17, and Wahi picked up his fifth yellow of the season during that match, which made him ineligible for the first-leg relegation game against Saint-Etienne. On May 29, he was arrested and investigated. Hours later, he played in the second leg as he scored a brace in the 4-1 win. The first leg had ended goalless, which meant Nice survived relegation.
Ligue de Football (LFP), the body that governs top professional football divisions in France, shared its stance on the matter. "At this stage, and given the ongoing investigation and the confidentiality requirements imposed by the police authorities, the LFP will not make any further comments and has not initiated disciplinary proceedings. However, it reserves the right to do so depending on the progress of the investigation.
"The LFP reiterates that it remains fully committed to ensuring the integrity of its competitions and that it will act with the utmost firmness against any behaviour that could compromise it," it told BBC Sport.