Elye Wahi has been blocked from travelling to Canada to join his Ivory Coast teammates for their FIFA World Cup 2026 group-stage clash against Germany in Toronto on Saturday, after French football authorities confirmed an investigation into alleged spot-fixing involving the Nice forward.

What the investigation involves

The Ligue de Football (LFP) confirmed on Wednesday that it had been alerted to "an unusually high volume of bets placed on a warning involving the player Elye Wahi." The allegations centre on a booking Wahi received while playing for Nice against Metz in May — his fifth yellow card of the season, which triggered an automatic suspension for the first leg of Nice's relegation play-off against Saint-Etienne.

Spot-fixing refers to the deliberate manipulation of specific match incidents — such as receiving a yellow card — in a way that allows individuals to profit through betting markets. Wahi, 23, is accused of engineering that booking deliberately.

The public prosecutor's office in Marseille confirmed to The Athletic that a 23-year-old Ligue 1 player had been arrested last month as part of "an investigation into allegations of organised fraud, organised sports corruption, handling of proceeds of crime and money laundering." Officials added that the player was released after being interviewed in police custody and that investigations remain ongoing. Wahi was not named in the statement.

Ivory Coast federation backs Wahi

The Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) issued a statement saying it had not been officially notified of any judicial or administrative proceedings against Wahi. Despite that, the federation confirmed he would not be travelling with the team to Canada.

"In this particularly delicate period, the FIF extends all its support to the player and reaffirms its confidence in him. Elye Wahi remains an important element of the Ivory Coast national team," the federation said.

Wahi will remain in the United States while his teammates face Germany in Toronto. Ivory Coast's next group fixture is against Curacao in Philadelphia next Thursday.

The 23-year-old had started Ivory Coast's opening World Cup victory over Ecuador on Sunday, underscoring how central he had been to the Elephants' plans heading into the tournament.

Second World Cup player denied entry to Canada

Wahi is the second player at this World Cup to be barred from entering Canada, following Ghana's Thomas Partey. Partey was refused a visa due to ongoing criminal proceedings in the United Kingdom, where he has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault stemming from allegations made by four women between 2020 and 2022. He is scheduled to stand trial next year.

Partey missed Ghana's win over Panama after incorrectly declaring to Canadian officials that he had never been arrested or charged with a crime. A subsequent appeal by the Ghanaian government to allow him brief entry for the match was rejected at a federal court in Ottawa.

BBC Sport has contacted Wahi's representatives and FIFA for comment.