FIFA bans Al-Nassr from registering new players over Musa’s Leicester deal

Nigeria’s forward Ahmed Musa celebrates after scoring their second goal during the Russia 2018 World Cup Group D football match between Nigeria and Iceland at the Volgograd Arena in Volgograd on June 22, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON

FIFA has banned Al-Nassr from registering new players for failing to pay add-ons owed to Leicester City as part of the Ahmed Musa deal.

Al-Nassr signed Cristiano Ronaldo in January 2023 but has been banned by FIFA from registering any more new players following a dispute with former English Premier League champions, Leicester.

This is as a result of the Saudi Arabian Pro League club’s failure to pay Championship side Leicester add-ons relating to a deal for Nigerian forward, Musa.

The former CSKA Moscow forward joined the Foxes immediately after their Premier League title win during the 2015/16 season but he enjoyed little or no success in England.

The Super Eagles captain scored a disappointing five goals in 33 outings across all competitions for the Foxes before being allowed to rejoin his former club on loan.

Musa was thereafter sold to Al-Nassr for a fee believed to be in the region of £14m in the summer transfer window of 2018.

Musa played 60 games for Al-Nassr and won the league before being released as a free agent two years later.

An official ruling from FIFA claims that the Saudi side have failed to pay €460k (£390k) plus interest in performance-related add-ons.

The ruling was originally released in October 2021, with Al-Nassr being warned that they would have a transfer registration ban imposed should they fail to pay Leicester the outstanding amount.

It is now believed that they have failed to comply with the ruling and have had a registration ban imposed upon them.

That applies to both