The Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) has imposed a transfer ban on Heartland Football Club of Owerri over unpaid contractual entitlements owed to Ivorian player Roland N’goran Koffi and others.

Koffi, who joined Heartland during the 2016/2017 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season, took the club before the FIFA Disciplinary Committee after the club allegedly failed to pay his outstanding dues.

FIFA had earlier directed the five-time Nigerian champions to settle the debt, but the club reportedly ignored the ruling issued several years ago.

In a letter dated October 3, 2025, signed by Espallargas Americo, FIFA confirmed that Heartland failed to comply with the earlier ruling (Ref. No. FPSD-19817), which mandated the club to pay Koffi his entitlements.

As a result, FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee has placed an immediate transfer ban on Heartland, preventing the club from registering new players both locally and internationally until full payment is made.

According to the FIFA correspondence, the sanction will remain in effect for a maximum of three consecutive registration periods unless the club clears its debts.

FIFA also instructed the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to ensure enforcement of the sanction within the Nigerian league system.

The ban is a major setback for Heartland, who were relegated from the NPFL to the Nigeria National League (NNL) last season and are currently rebuilding their squad ahead of the new campaign.

In addition to the FIFA directive, the NFF Players’ Status and Arbitration Committee (PSAC) has also ordered Heartland to settle outstanding payments to several former players, including Umah Johnson, Esobe Chukwudi, Ugochukwu Leonard, and Ezekiel Bassey.