World Cup players with dual eligibility face a tough choice about which country to represent

GENEVA (AP) — Almost every World Cup matchup has a storyline of a player who could have represented another country.

Take Folarin Balogun who scored twice in the United States’ opening win over Paraguay. He chose to play for the U.S. where he was born instead of England where he grew up or Nigeria where his parents came from.

Or Yasin Ayari, who picked Sweden over his father’s native Tunisia, a decision that came into focus as Sweden defeated the North African team 5-1 with two goals from Ayari.

And there’s Ayyoub Bouaddi, an 18-year-old standout who switched national teams from France to Morocco just weeks before the tournament kicked off.

The World Cup in the U.S., Mexico and Canada is the biggest melting pot in the tournament’s history. Decades of migration are reflected in the rosters of major European teams like France, England and Germany. Meanwhile, many teams in Africa and the Caribbean rely heavily on their diaspora, made easier by a relaxation of FIFA’s eligibility rules.

Dozens, if not hundreds, of players at this World Cup are playing for a country other than the one in which they were born. Many with mixed backgrounds switched allegiances when turning senior, following their heart – or their ambition.

Nearly 100 players at this World Cup were born in France, but only 23 of them play for the French national team. The others – France-born players with family ties worldwide – make up significant parts of the squads of Algeria, Cape Verde, Congo, Ghana, Haiti, Ivory Coast, Morocco and Tunisia.

Bouaddi, one of the top performers in Morocco’s 1-1 draw with Brazil, was born in France and nurtured at top-tier club Lille. He played for France at the youth level and was captain of France’s under-21 team as recently as March, but switched to Morocco, where his family came from, just in time for the World Cup.

"I’m very proud of my decision and very happy to represent my country, Morocco,” he said before the tournament. “My family is happy and I hope great things will come in the upcoming competitions.”

Moroccan soccer federation president Faouzi Lekjaa personally visited Bouaddi at his home and met with the president of Lille to outline the North African kingdom’s soccer ambitions and the professional environment it offers, according to Moroccan state television.

Morocco, which in 2022 became the first African country to reach the World Cup semifinals, relies heavily on players from its diaspora in Spain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. It has 19 foreign-born players in its 26-man squad.

Defender Achraf Hakimi was born in Madrid and Real Madrid forward Brahim Diaz played one game for Spain before his FIFA switch to Morocco was processed in 2024.

Some of the biggest profiles of soccer had to make a choice. Kylian Mbappé was eligible to play for Cameroon or Algeria because of his family background but chose France where he was born and raised. Spain’s Lamine Yamal could have played for Morocco, his father’s homeland.

Brothers Désiré and Guéla Doué took separate paths. Both were born in France but Désiré plays for France while Guéla chose to represent Ivory Coast, where their father is from.

They’re not the only brothers who have ended up on separate World Cup teams. John Souttar represents Scotland while his brother Harry plays for Australia. Nico and Iñaki Williams were born in Spain to Ghanaian parents and while Nico chose to play for Spain, Iñaki picked Ghana.

Tunisia tried to recruit Ayari, the Sweden midfielder who plays for Brighton in the Premier League, for its national team based on his father’s Tunisian background. However, his father, Azzouz Ayari, pushed back. He told Swedish media that he felt his son should represent the country in which he was born and raised.

“I am an immigrant, but my children, no. Yasin is a Swede, with Tunisian background,” Azzouz Ayari told newspaper Aftonbladet. “I want him to play for Sweden because I want him to feel that he is giving back to the country that really took care of him.”

Sweden fans won’t argue with that decision. Ayari scored twice in the team’s opener against Tunisia but muted his celebrations out of respect for his father’s home country.

Balogun’s two goals in the 4-1 win against Paraguay made him – and his background – more widely known to the American public. He played for England at youth level, except for a brief stint with the U.S. under-18 team, but switched to represent the United States in 2023.

That was possible because of birthright citizenship rules in the U.S. – Balogun was born in New York, while his Nigerian parents were visiting.

Balogun has cited the passion of U.S. soccer fans that he experienced while visiting a training camp in Florida in March 2023 as part of the reason why he decided to represent the United States. When they found out he was in Florida, many fans urged him to play for the U.S. national team. He also met with U.S. team officials.

“I’ve always said the fans gave me so much motivation and showed me so much support. The most important thing has always been to be able to repay that,” Balogun said after the Paraguay game last week. “I just want to continue to show the fans I made the right decision."

Whether he could have gotten a place in the highly competitive England squad is unclear. At the time, then-England coach Gareth Southgate said they were monitoring his progress but couldn't promise anything.

Switching nationalities is nothing new in soccer. Some of the sport’s biggest stars represented multiple countries, including Ferenc Puskás, who was the leader of Hungary’s “Mighty Magyars” in the 1950s but played for Spain at the 1962 World Cup.

That Spain squad also included Puskás’s Real Madrid teammate Alfredo Di Stéfano, whose international career started with his native Argentina.

In modern soccer, FIFA intervened in 2004 amid concern Brazilian players were being naturalized with a passport too easily by other countries, including Qatar.

A “clear connection” with the country was insisted on, which could be two years of residence or a grandparent born there.

FIFA’s then-president Sepp Blatter later aimed to “stop this farce” warning that at a 32-team World Cup “you will have 16 full of Brazilian players.”

The residence demand on players aged 18 or over became five years in 2008, and a proposal at the 2011 FIFA Congress by the United Arab Emirates to cut it to three was rejected.

Dual- or multiple-national players have been “cap-tied” by FIFA to any team they represented in a senior competitive game. Those who played only in friendlies or at youth level could apply to switch.

FIFA eased its rules in 2020 to allow more eligibility changes, but players are locked to a nation if they play at a finals tournament of the World Cup or continental championship.

__

AP reporter Akram Oubachir in Casablanca, Morocco, contributed to this report.

AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/fifa-world-cup

Spain's Nico Williams works out during a training session, Saturday, June 6, 2026, in Chattanooga, Tenn., ahead of the World Cup soccer tournament. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Sweden's Yasin Ayari (18) celebrates after scoring his team's fifth goal during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Sweden and Tunisia in Guadalupe, near Monterrey, Mexico, Sunday, June 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Morocco's Ayyoub Bouaddi (6) claps as he leaves the pich following a tie in the World Cup Group C soccer match between Brazil and Morocco in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Saturday, June 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

United States' Folarin Balogun, center, celebrates scoring his side's third goal against Paraguay with teamates during the World Cup Group D soccer match in Inglewood, Calif., near Los Angeles, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

LONDON (AP) — Andy Burnham ’s resounding victory on Friday in a special U.K. election sets in motion a chain of events that could lead to the end of the premiership of Keir Starmer, who less than two years ago led the Labour Party back to power after 14 years.

Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, is widely tipped to be the lead candidate to replace Starmer, especially as his victory in the seat of Makerfield in northwest England was so decisive. Despite Labour’s dismal poll ratings and substantial losses in local elections in May, Burnham defied electoral gravity.

He was able to not only see off the challenge of the candidate from anti-immigration Reform UK, but substantially increased Labour's share of the vote to nearly 55%. At the local elections last month, Reform UK won virtually every seat that make up the constituency of Makerfield.

Now that Burnham, 56, is heading back to Parliament after nearly a decade away, during which time he was the popular mayor of Greater Manchester, he is now in a position to challenge the embattled Starmer for the leadership of the Labour Party and of the country. He hasn't openly said he will do so but everything he says shows that he has his eyes firmly fixed on the top job.

Burnham described his victory as “the change moment” and said he and his team hoped to “lay out a new path” for Britain.

“I think we need in this country right now for people to feel a sense of hope that there is something better to work towards on the horizon,” he said.

The next U.K. national election doesn’t have to be held until 2029, but British politics allows parties to change leader midterm without the need for a general election.

Here’s how it could happen:

Though Starmer has repeatedly said he will stand against anyone who challenges his position, he may come to the realization over the coming days that he would lose a leadership election, a humiliating end for a man who led his party in a landslide victory in July 2024.

Starmer is one of the most unpopular prime ministers in history after a series of policy missteps and controversies, most notably his misguided appointment of Peter Mandelson as the U.K.'s ambassador to Washington, despite his links to convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

There is speculation that members of his Cabinet will inform him this weekend that the game is up and that it would be better for him — and Labour — to announce his resignation.

If he decided to leave office immediately, the Cabinet and Labour’s governing body would likely pick an interim leader to be prime minister, probably someone not expected to run for the Labour Party leadership. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy could fit the bill.

Alternatively, he could announce his intention to step down at a later date, say the party’s annual conference in September.

It's clear that Burnham will stand in any ensuing leadership race. The big question is whether anyone else would too? Wes Streeting, who quit as health secretary last month, has indicated he will throw his hat in the ring. Other potential candidates include Starmer's former deputy, Angela Rayner who resigned last September over an unpaid property tax, and Al Carns, who resigned last week as the armed forces minister over Starmer's funding plans for the country's defense.

There are many in Labour's ranks who say it would be best if no one stood against Burnham so he could enter 10 Downing Street this summer before the party conference.

On Friday, Starmer was in the peculiar position of congratulating Burnham on his victory in the knowledge that it shines a spotlight on his leadership.

The prime minister said Friday that he had not spoken to Burnham, but insisted he would fight attempts to oust him.

“Yes, I will run, I will stand,” he said when asked about what he would do in the event of a leadership challenge. “I’ve said repeatedly I’m not going to walk away from that.”

In the event of a direct challenge, Starmer would automatically be on the ballot.

To challenge Starmer, candidates must win the support of a fifth, or 81, of the party’s House of Commons lawmakers.

Those candidates who meet the threshold of support within the House of Commons would then have to receive the backing of 5% of local constituency parties, or at least three party affiliates — groups such as trade unions and cooperative societies.

Eligible members of the party and affiliates would then vote for the leader using an electoral system that ranks the candidates. The winner is the first candidate to secure more than 50% of the vote.

King Charles III would then invite the winner to become prime minister and form a government.

Should there be a contest, it could last three to four months, with the party organizing town halls before the vote is open to its members.

Labour party's Andy Burnham stands beside candidate Count Binface, left, and a candidate for Protect British Wildlife after winning the Makerfield by-election, paving the way for a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Jon Super)

Labour party candidate Andy Burnham, center, stands with other candidates on the podium at the Edge Wigan, awaiting the Makerfield by-election result announcement in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Jon Super)

Britain's Labour party candidate Andy Burnham speaks to supporters after the Makerfield by-election in Ashton in Makerfield, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Jon Super)

Labour party's Andy Burnham speaks after winning the Makerfield by-election, paving the way for a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo/Jon Super)

Journalists wait in Downing Street in London, following the Makerfield by-election, Friday, June 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)