With six months to go until the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, controversy has sparked after the Chilean Football Federation filed a complaint about serious irregularities involving the Ecuador squad during the qualifiers.
Ecuador allegedly hid the true identity of one of their call-ups, a player called Byron Castillo. Chile has already reported the allegedly fake documentation to FIFA, demanding that they take Ecuador’s spot in the World Cup.
The lawyer of the Chilean Football Federation, Eduardo Carlezzo, has told MARCA that Castillo’s documents are fake, noting that the player is Colombian.
Castillo has played eight games with Ecuador in the World Cup qualifiers, two of them against Chile.
“We have filed a complaint with FIFA as a result of what we believe is a very serious incident in the call-up of the player Byron Castillo with the Ecuadorian national team,” Carlezzo told MARCA.
“We have thoroughly investigated the case to really understand where the player was born and we are clear – he was born in Colombia.
“What we are stating categorically is that Byron Javier Castillo Segura was born in Tumaco, Colombia, on July 25, 1995, and Byron David Castillo Segura, who would have been born on November 10, 1998, does not exist, he is a ghost. It is an adulteration, a forgery and even a crime by the laws of Ecuador.”
Carlezzo went on to provide more information on how the documents were allegedly forged, with everything starting at a now-suspended football club in Ecuador.
“The case has a very solid narrative based on documents that show how the forgery of documents began in Ecuador,” added Carlezzo.
“You have to keep in mind that all this starts with a very deep scheme of forgery and adulteration of player documents. It all started in 2012 in the province of Guayas [in Ecuador] with a club called Norte America. Precisely, Byron Castillo was registered in that club in 2012.
“The Ecuadorian Federation itself named this club as the epicentre of the falsification of player documents in Ecuador and it was suspended later. Several employees were arrested for this as well.”
The Chilean Federation has also requested a hearing with FIFA due to the seriousness of the incident, for the player to offer his take on the issue. So far, FIFA has not responded to the complaint.
Could Chile play the World Cup in Qatar?
Chile are surprised by this scandal that has affected the World Cup a few months before the tournament kicks off. Ecuador finished four in the qualifiers, but Chile are now seeking La Tri’s spot in the Qatar World Cup.
The response of the Ecuadorian Football Federation
For their part, the Ecuadorian Football Federation issued this statement in response to the Chilean Football Federation’s claims to explain that they “will be ready to demonstrate before FIFA or before the necessary body, that at all times we have acted legally and that our meritorious qualification for the World Cup in Qatar 2022 is the result of this.”