Irankunda's age questioned! Sporting winger ends legal battle | OneFootball

Nestory Irankunda, a winger for Sporting, reached a financial settlement in the legal case he brought against Tony Basha, an Australian coach and agent, following public statements in which he called into question the Australian international’s age.

According to the Australian newspaper ‘The Advertiser’, the parties reached an understanding before the case went to trial. The agreement provides for the payment of financial compensation to the player, as well as a retraction from Basha and the withdrawal of the allegations previously made.

The controversy dated back to April 2024, when Tony Basha claimed on social media, without providing evidence, that Irankunda was not the age officially registered. He alleged that the player was 25 years old, not 20, basing that version on supposed reports from Africa.

, seeking compensation of around €210,000. The winger’s defense also argued that this type of suspicion regarding the birth certificates of African players is rooted in discriminatory stereotypes that are recurrent in football.

Born in a refugee camp in Tanzania, Irankunda - who has drawn some criticism - has now seen the case end out of court, with the allegations withdrawn. The agreement thus brings to a close a case that had dragged on for more than two years and called the player’s reputation into question.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.