Mile Svilar faces international eligibility deadlock

AS Roma goalkeeper Mile Svilar is currently facing an international eligibility deadlock due to FIFA regulations. Despite being born in Belgium to Serbian parents and developing through Belgian youth academies, Svilar is unable to represent Belgium at the senior level because of a single appearance for the Serbian national team in a 2021 friendly against Qatar.

Under FIFA rules, participating in a senior international match can bind a player to that federation. While the Belgian Football Association attempted to resolve the situation by citing precedents like Brahim Diaz, the requests were not successful. Consequently, Svilar remains in a professional limbo: he is ineligible to switch to the Belgian national team, yet he is not currently being called up by the Serbian national team.