Premier Soccer League (PSL) chief executive officer Rodwell Thabe has clarified the controversy surrounding Scottland FC’s mid-season player registrations, saying the club was permitted to register five replacement players for domestic competitions.
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Read E-PaperThabe said all 18 PSL clubs were subject to the same mid-season registration regulations, which allow each club to register a maximum of five replacement players.
Scottland used the provision to register Nickson Nyasulu, Emmanuel Jalai, Neville Tengeg, Anderson De Campos and Seth Patrick.
The PSL CEO further explained that Scottland was granted permission through an emergency committee resolution to register two additional players — Stoffel Witbeen and Al-Ameen Kehinde Tijani — specifically for its CAF campaign.
However, Thabe stressed that Witbeen and Tijani are not eligible to play in domestic PSL competitions and can only feature in African club competitions.
“For the mid[season] window, every club is permitted to only register FIVE players, and Scottland was allowed to do the same,” Thabe said in response to a letter from a supporter questioning whether the club had exceeded the registration limit.
“Additionally, Scottland was allowed to register two players, namely Witbeen Stoffel and Al-Ameen Tijani, but I must emphasise that these two players are not eligible for the PSL competition.”
The clarification has, however, raised questions following Witbeen’s appearance for Scottland in the Chibuku Super Cup.
Witbeen came on as a substitute in the 88th minute of Scottland’s 3-1 victory over FC Platinum in the Chibuku Super Cup Round of 16 on 14 August 2026.
Meanwhile, Seth Patrick has also featured in domestic competition, coming on in Scottland’s 3-0 league victory over Agama on Matchday 29.
With Patrick, Jalai, Nyasulu, Tengeg and De Campos all having featured in domestic competitions, the issue surrounding Scottland’s mid-season signings has attracted renewed attention.
The PSL maintains that Scottland’s registration process was conducted within the applicable regulations and that Witbeen and Tijani were specifically restricted to African competitions.
Any question concerning a player’s eligibility to feature in a domestic competition would therefore need to be addressed through the appropriate PSL procedures.
