enough is enough PART 2!

[Fins Prompte]

Brazilian Ailton to play for Qatar


BERLIN, March 3 (Reuters) - Werder Bremen's league-leading scorer Ailton said on Wednesday he would accept an offer to play for Qatar's national side after unsuccessful attempts to win a spot for his native Brazil and Germany.


'After the match against 1860 Munich on Sunday I'm going to fly to Qatar and sign a contract,' Ailton was quoted in German newspaper Kreiszeitung Syke, according to German sport news agency SID.


Ailton, who has scored 20 goals in 22 matches this season, has never played for Brazil but has repeatedly expressed a desire to play in the 2006 World Cup. Germany coach Rudi Voeller had rebuffed Ailton's bid to play for Germany earlier this season, saying: 'He's Brazilian.'

Ailton, who joined Werder in 1998 and will move to rivals Schalke 04 next season, speaks German and was ready to take on German citizenship.

German media reports said Ailton, 30, would receive a €1million signing bonus as well as €400,000 per year to play for Qatar.

Qatar are also reportedly interested in Borussia Dortmund's Brazilian defender Dede.
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Wish more coaches were like Veoller. ******* disgrace. Hope Qatar fail.

[nicodemus]

this is the saddest thing i have ever heard..seriously..its a disgrace for world soccer as a whole

[TedNolan]

this is ridiculous.

[Celticrugby]

Wait. How can you just buy national team players? That's total crap.

[JC_The_Atheist]

i cant stand all this,i even think it should only go as far as your parents never mind what they're doing now.

[Javier Zanetti]

He's selling his identity...awful!

[Ceres]

Quote:
______________________
Wait. How can you just buy national team players? That's total crap.
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It's quite easy thou, If he has never played any official matches for Brazil, they just have to give him a new passport, and then he's a Qatar international...

It would never work in Denmark thou, since he would have to live 7 - 8 years in this country just to be able to apply for a danish citizenship, not even being sure that he would get it ...and it wouldnt matter if his name was Ronaldinho ...

[pyrtas]

apart from the fact that it the whole thing seems at least strange I have to say that apparently it is too much saying that Ailton speak German.
Heard he can`t read well and write too - in any language!

[orswich]

i thought FIFA had a rule that you had to be a citizen of a country for 4-5 years first, before eligable for a national team?

[Fins Prompte]

Originally Posted by orswich

i thought FIFA had a rule that you had to be a citizen of a country for 4-5 years first, before eligable for a national team?

maybe thats for when you have played for another country as minor in the UNDER tournaments and then want to play for another country?

[Fins Prompte]

DOHA, March 8 (Reuters) - The Qatar Football Association on Monday defended their move to naturalise three Brazilian soccer players saying they are not violating any FIFA regulations.

Brazilians Ailton, Leandro and Dede all play for German clubs and have no previous links with Qatar, but the trio could line-up for the Middle Eastern nation in their next World Cup qualifying match against Jordan on March 31.

However, FIFA president Sepp Blatter told Reuters through a spokesman on Monday that he was totally opposed to the move and was treating it as his 'top priority'.

'It is against the spirit of the game,' he said, 'and FIFA will aim at curbing this practice. We will meet with football and legal specialists to discuss the matter this week.'

Ailton, 29, Dede, 25 and Leandro, 26, arrived in Qatar on Monday and Ailton, the top scorer in the Bundesliga this season with 20 goals in 23 matches for Werder Bremen, told a news conference he had no qualms about playing for Qatar and was not bothered about what FIFA might do.

'I don't really care. I am here to sign a contract as I am agreeing to the offer to represent Qatar,' he said.

Ailton refused to comment on the monetary part of the deal but said he was not guided solely by financial motivation.

'Money is important, but more important to me is to fulfil a dream to play for a national team and, perhaps, in a World Cup.

'Brazil do not want me. Germany is not prepared to take me. That's why I have decided to play for Qatar which appreciates me,' he said.

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Dede said: 'I will finally get a chance to be a national player. I didn't get a chance in Brazil or in Germany either, but maybe I will be at the 2006 World Cup with Qatar.

'I'd love to play in a World Cup, preferably with my brother,' Dede said pointing to Leandro, also his Dortmund team mate, who has also been offered a chance to play for Qatar.

ONLY CHANCE

Qatar's national team coach, Frenchman Philippe Troussier has said the only chance Qatar would have of qualifying for the 2006 World Cup in Germany would be through naturalisation of foreign players into the national team.

He has the support of Saud Al Mohannadi, the general secretary of the Qatar FA who told Reuters on Monday: 'FIFA's regulations regarding naturalisation are very clear.

'If a player has not played for the 'A' team of any other national association, then he can change his nationality and play for his country of choice.

'All three players we have decided to enrol in our national team are eligible for a change of nationality and we hope the FIFA Players' Status Committee will okay this move.

'Anyway, there are several other instances of the naturalisation of foreigners in Europe, in America and elsewhere.

'Even Qatar has done it in other sports like athletics and weightlifting. Then why all this hue and cry now?' he asked.

The Qataris believe they are abiding by Article 15 of the newly ratified FIFA Statutes concerning eligibility to play for national teams and are not contravening any FIFA rules.

The first sentence of FIFA's Article 15 states: 'Any person holding the nationality of a country is eligible to play for the representative teams of the Association of his country.'

LAW CHANGE

Although FIFA did change their laws in Doha last October on dual-nationality and the rules regarding players who had represented one country at under-21 level before opting to play senior internationals for another country, this is not affecting the Qatari issue.

What is developing in Doha is a straight-forward case of players changing nationality before making any international appearances for the country of their birth.

The new eligibility rules regarding dual-nationality for players who had played under-21 international soccer became widely known in January when Frederic Kanoute, Mohamed Sissoko and Lamine Sakho were free to change their allegiances after all had played under-21 internationals for France.

FIFA's status committee agreed that Kanoute and Sissoko could play for Mali and Sakho could play for Senegal in the African Nations Cup, but all had blood ties to their adopted countries.

If the Qataris are successful in fielding the Brazilian trio, who have no Qatari links at all, the nature of international soccer could change.

MANY CRITICS

Among the many critics of Qatar's plans are Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, the president of the German FA and a member of FIFA's executive committee, and Rudi Voeller, Germany's national coach.

'We are of the opinion that it is ridiculous that people can acquire the nationality of a country with which they have absolutely no connection. It attacks the fundamental fabric of national teams,' Mayer-Vorfelder said.

Voeller has rebuffed Ailton's claims to be picked for Germany where he has played for Werder since 1998, saying: 'He's Brazilian.'

It has also been suggested in the German media that Voeller, who has a problem on the left side of his defence, could use the highly-talented Dede, but Voeller's position is unwavering, saying a player had to have a strong connection with the country to be considered for its national team.

'It cannot be right that a country buys a team, and for example, Qatar comes to the World Cup with five Brazilians and five Frenchmen,' he said.
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About freaking time BLATTER.

[Jere Markus]

maybe I could play for Singapore?

never been there nor have any relatives from there.. but it seems that´s no obstacle

[redefining_form]

Their so crap anyone could play for them. It'd help if you had a name that's 30 letters long, you'd be on the fast track to citizenship.

[Vami]

You know, I started a project on Polish Championship Manager forum. We will collect 20-30 players and send our CV's and nationality-gaining forms and we will play for NIUE. They played last match in 1983, they lost to Tahiti 0:14...

[Max Power]

Hmm, I wish I could become an Irish national! Qatar and the Republic could use a lot of players.

This isn't the first time it's happened. Japan has a Brazilian, and I think a few Kiwis play for their rugby team.