The Glitches
Instead of a slick digital rollout, many applicants across at least three continents hit a wall of technical failures:
- Software crashes & frozen screens – the Safe Exam Browser or screen sharing tools locked up, preventing log in or wiping answers mid test.
- Lost time – reconnect loops and invigilator delays left some candidates with barely ten minutes to finish the hour long paper.
- Answers not recorded – several participants opened their result sheet to find blank responses for questions they clearly completed.
Reports came in from the UK, Niger, Turkmenistan and beyond, describing everything from missing translation tools to vanishing search bars in what is meant to be an “open book” test. (The Independent)
Human Cost
For many would be agents the fallout is severe:
- A year on ice – because FIFA now holds the exam only once a year, dozens who were marked “failed” after platform errors have been told they must wait 12 months for another chance, with no right of appeal.
- Money & preparation lost – candidates had invested in prep courses, study materials and time off work; all of that evaporated in one flawed sitting.
- Unequal treatment – a handful were quietly offered a resit on 30 June, but most received rejection emails citing exam rules and “force majeure” without clarifying why their own cases were not rescheduled. (The Independent)
One UK candidate called the process “a shambles”, while another from Niger wrote that seven of the nine “wrong” answers on his score sheet were simply blank.
FIFA’s Response
FIFA has not issued a public statement beyond telling journalists it is “handling complaints case by case” and that “the majority of candidates took the exam with no problems”, citing reassurances from its tech providers. The Guardian
Privately, sources say Zurich is monitoring incident logs but insists the platform is sound. That stance has infuriated candidates who possess invigilator chat transcripts confirming the faults lay with the system, not their devices. Without a blanket resit or an independent review, accusations of inconsistency and unfairness are growing louder.
