Ecuador will participate in the World Cup this year in Qatar after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) determined on Tuesday that Byron Castillo, who Chile alleged was ineligible to compete during the qualifiers, is an Ecuadorian citizen.
Nevertheless, Ecuador will be docked three points when the next round of World Cup qualifiers begins and will be fined $100,000 Swiss Francs ($101,605.36) for “use of a document containing incorrect information,” according to CAS.
Ecuador were drawn in Group A alongside Qatar, Senegal and the Netherlands and the South American team were set to play the hosts when the World Cup kicks off on Nov. 20.
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In response to Chile’s initial protest that Castillo was actually born in General Villamil Playas, Ecuador in 1998 as opposed to Tumaco, Colombia as claimed on his official paperwork, FIFA rejected Chile’s appeal in September.
Castillo participated in eight of Ecuador’s qualification games for the Qatar World Cup, including twice against Chile. Ecuador finished fourth. The player was not ineligible, according to Ecuador.
Chile came in seventh, missing out on the final automatic slot to Qatar, and Peru came in fifth in South American qualifying.
