Bundee Aki and James Lowe's Irish status cited in Spanish appeal against World Cup exclusion

The Spanish Federation is challenging the decision of a judicial committee to disqualify it from the 2023 World Cup for fielding an ineligible player who was deemed to have represented Spain without fulfilling the requisite residency criteria

Ireland's Bundee Aki and James Lowe celebrate

IRELAND, Scotland, and New Zealand's use of foreign-born players has been used as evidence of inconsistency in World Rugby's eligibility regulations as part of Spain's appeal against a second consecutive World Cup exclusion for fielding an unqualified player.

The Daily Telegraph reports that James Lowe and Bundee Aki plus Scottish prop Pierre Schoeman and the Tongan-born scrum-half on the cusp of a first All Blacks cap, Folau Fakatava, have all been cited as evidence in Spain’s appeal against their World Cup disqualification for fielding an ineligible player, Gavin van den Berg. The Federación Española de Rugby submitted its appeal to World Rugby last week.