The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has imposed a national ban on Churchill Brothers FC from registering new players, following a directive from the FIFA Disciplinary Committee.
The All India Football Federation has issued a national ban on Churchill Brothers FC’s registration of new players on theย directive of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee after a pay-related dispute on Thursday.
The football clubโs national ban stems from alleged unpaid dues owed to English striker Kurtis Owen Guthrie, who was signed by Churchill Brothers ahead of the 2024โ25 season.
AIFF issues national ban on Churchill Brothers
In a letter shared by the AIFF, it informed all member associations and stakeholders about Churchill Brothers’ national ban on registering new players, effective immediately. The Federation also instructed them to communicate the word to their affiliated units and registered clubs.
“This circular is to notify all the Member Associations (MA) and stakeholders of the AIFF that a National Ban on the registration of new players has been imposed on the Club Churchill Brothers FC Goa, a club registered with the Goa Football Association.
“Imposition of the ban will be effective immediately in accordance with the correspondence received from FIFA’s Head of Disciplinary dated 01 September 2026. We further request all the Mรs to communicate the same to all the affiliated units and registered clubs under your Association. This is for your information and necessary action,” the AIFF said.
More from Football NewsGoan club responds to suspension
After the AIFF issued a national ban on Churchill Brothers FC’s player registration, the Goan football club has said that the matter is already resolved.
The club said a technical issue with its official email left them unaware of the sanction, but also confirmed that full payment to Kurtis Owen Guthrie has been made since. They have also requested FIFA to review the matter and lift the transfer ban.
“Churchill Brothers FC Goa has made the full payment due today (September 3) in relation to the matter concerning Mr Kurtis Owen Guthrie. We were notified of the registration ban only yesterday.
“We would like to respectfully emphasise that, upon becoming aware of the ban, the Club acted immediately and has completed the payment within 24 hours of receiving the notification,” the club said.
The national ban on player registration would severely affect the Churchill Brothers, considering that the 2026-27 ISL season is closing in. But the club would have the option to sign free-agent foreign footballers or pick up someone on loan.