Seven times African continental champions Tunisian giants Étoile Sportive du Sahel has been slapped with a transfer ban after the club failed to honor its financial obligations to Gor Mahia regarding the transfer of defender Alphonce Omija.
The landmark ruling, delivered on April 30 by the World football governing body FIFA marks an end to months-long dispute that began when Omija moved to the Sousse-based club in September 2025.
Despite the defender becoming a regular fixture in the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1, Gor Mahia management maintained that they had not received a single cent of the agreed 5.1 million shillings (transfer fee, leading the Kenyan champions to seek legal redress.
Gor Mahia Secretary General Nick Arum revealed that despite the International Transfer Certificate being released and the player hitting the ground running in North Africa, the Tunisian side had completely ignored the payment schedule.
He noted that while Étoile had committed to settling the debt by October 2025, they had subsequently gone silent, prompting the Kenyan giants to initiate the documentation necessary to escalate the breach of contract to FIFA.
The dispute had become particularly contentious after reports emerged that Étoile du Sahel had placed a massive valuation of over 64 million shillings on Omija while simultaneously claiming an inability to pay the original debt.
In a formal communique addressed to both clubs following those months of persistence, FIFA confirmed the severity of the situation, stating, “It appears that, despite the Decision, Etoile Sportive Du Sahel (the Respondent) has not yet complied with its financial obligations towards Gor Mahia FC.”
Consequently, the Tunisian club is now strictly prohibited from registering any new players both at the domestic and international levels.
“In this regard, we wish to inform the parties that a ban from registering new players internationally and nationally has been implemented by FIFA on the Respondent.”
The world governing body further clarified that this registration freeze will remain in force until the full amount owed to Gor Mahia is settled in its entirety. FIFA has set a maximum duration of up to three consecutive registration periods for this sanction should the debt remain outstanding.
