Spain stripped of Rugby World Cup place for second time after using ineligible player
BBC NewsMAR 17 2022
The penalty is neither reasonable nor fair. The Spanish Federation were deceived by a passport falsification, and informed World Rugby when they became aware of it. Furthermore, van den Berg signed a document declaring he was eligible to play for Los Leones.
Van den Berg may have intentionally misled the Spanish Federation and committed fraud, but it was the Federation's responsibility to confirm his eligibility. Regulations are clearer than they were when a similar situation occurred in 2019, and an Eligibility Committee was even formed to prevent this from happening; the Spanish have no excuse.