President of Burkina Faso Traoré queries CAF, FIFA over playoff spot

President of Burkina, Ibrahim Traoré, has demanded an explanation from world football governing body FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on how Nigeria edged his country to a World Cup playoff spot.

Burkina Faso believed they had secured qualification after a 3–1 victory over Ethiopia, but CAF’s decision to deduct points earned against the lowest-ranked team in each group — following Eritrea’s withdrawal — worked against them.

The rule favoured Nigeria, who collected only two points from the team that finished bottom of their group, Zimbabwe, a situation that has reportedly left President Traoré furious and demanding answers.

Reports indicate that the Burkinabe leader has requested a detailed explanation of the qualification process, which saw his country narrowly miss out despite a strong finish to their campaign.

Burkina Faso had been forced to play their early qualifiers away from home while renovations were ongoing at the Stade du 4 Août to meet CAF standards.

After returning to their home ground, the Stallions picked up crucial victories and believed they had done enough to advance — only to discover that Nigeria had qualified ahead of them.