FIFA prevailed in a U.S. appeals court over a former Nigerian national team coach, Samson Siasia, who sought to overturn his lifetime ban, later reduced to five years, for match fixing.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 3-0 on Thursday. According to Reuters, the Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled that Siasia failed to demonstrate why a trial court in New York had jurisdiction over his case.
FIFA banned Siasia for life in 2019 after he violated FIFA’s code of ethics with a bribery scheme for Australian matches. Siasia was unable to use his U.S. passport due to the ban. Coaching license from the Soccer Federation.
Siasia, an Atlanta resident and former Nigerian striker, sued FIFA in August 2021, saying the evidence was “grossly insufficient” and that the ban violated his due process rights under the U.S. Constitution.
But the appeals court said Siasia did not show that FIFA was “essentially at home” in New York, or agreed to be sued there because it banned his use of what Siasia called his “New York” coaching license from its alleged New York “agent,” U.S. Soccer.
The unsigned decision upheld a Manhattan trial judge’s October 2021 dismissal of Siasia’s lawsuit.
Siasia’s lawyer Nitor Egbarin said the decision might be the “end of the road” for the case, but he would discuss it with his client.
FIFA has said Siasia’s claims were meritless.
The soccer body is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, and had banned Siasia under Swiss law.
In June 2021, the Court of Arbitration for Sport shortened the ban, calling it too severe for a first offence.