FIFA suspends Trinidad and Tobago over High Court claim

GML Investigative Editor Mark Bassant grills former TTFA president and owner of W Connection David John-Williams during an interview at the Brechin Castle Golf Course, Couva, on Tuesday evening. Photo credit ABRAHAM DIAZ/ Trinidad and Tobago Guardian

FIFA has suspended Trinidad and Tobago from international soccer after its football association (TTFA) pursued a dispute through the country’s High Court in contravention of the world governing body’s statutes.

The TTFA and FIFA have been at loggerheads since March after the world governing body dissolved the executive of the cash-strapped association.

FIFA said it had installed a normalisation committee after they concluded the TTFA’s former leadership had “engaged in various acts of serious mismanagement”, which was opposed by TTFA president William Wallace and contested in court.

“The suspension was prompted by the former leadership of the TTFA lodging a claim before a local court in Trinidad and Tobago in order to contest the decision of the FIFA Council to appoint a normalisation committee for the TTFA,” FIFA said in a statement.

“This course of action was in direct breach of article 59 of the FIFA Statutes, which expressly prohibits recourse to ordinary courts unless specifically provided for in the FIFA regulations.”

FIFA said they gave a Sept. 16 deadline to withdraw the case which was extended to Sept. 23 before the decision was taken to suspend the TTFA.