Teenager's dream to play for Wales at risk over citizenship rejection

Teenager's Wales dream at risk over citizenship rejection

3 hours ago

Aled BistonNewyddion S4C

A talented young footballer has been left in limbo over whether he will be able to play for Wales after his application for British citizenship was rejected.

Enzo Romano was born in Cardiff in 2009 to Italian and Spanish parents and needs to be a British citizen to play for the national team under Fifa rules.

While he lives in Spain after moving there as a child, the 16-year-old has played for youth teams including Barcelona and Wales.

But Romano now believes his dream of representing Wales could be over after his family were informed last week his British citizenship application had been refused for the second time.

The Home Office said it had "agreed to reopen the case in order to consider whether there is new evidence from the family to present".

"Just because I moved to Barcelona doesn't mean I'm not Welsh," said Romano.

"The first thing that comes into my mind every time is the dragon on my chest and, for me, the fact that they don't want to give me nationality so I can get a passport [is] so unfair.

"To think that I can't represent my country playing football just because of this situation really hurts me."

Why can't Romano play for Wales?

According to Fifa eligibility rules, a player needs to be a British citizen to be able to represent one of the UK teams.

So far, Enzo has been able to play for the Welsh youth teams as he has a birth certificate proving he was born in Cardiff.

But from the age of 16, the Welsh youth teams start playing qualifiers for the Euros and the World Cup, which means travelling abroad.

Enzo does not have a British passport which means he will not be able to represent Wales.

In his case, the decision to reject his citizenship application was based on the British Nationality Act 1981. Under this legislation, to qualify for citizenship at least one parent must be a British citizen or have settled permanently in the United Kingdom.

Enzo's father, Antonio Romano, had lived and worked in Wales for a decade and believed he held permanent residency status.

However, according to the Home Office's decision, he did not meet the required salary threshold for five consecutive years at the time.

The UK government has a document which sets out guidelines for submitting a British citizenship application for a child.

Those guidelines do not state that a person needs to earn a minimum wage in order to be considered an "employed person".

Antonio said: "Enzo was in tears, devastated by this... he doesn't understand why his own country rejects him. He locked himself in his bedroom for hours.

"We have been fighting for two years to make his dream come true."

Enzo is currently playing for Vilassar de Dalt in the Liga Elit in Spain, but said he has turned down offers to play for Spain and Italy's youth teams as he wants to represent Wales.

The Football Association of Wales (FAW) has also supported the family during the process.

Antonio Romano believes he has been misled, as he said the relevant information was not in the guidelines.

"If you go to the Home Office page and check all the requirements, Enzo is eligible for citizenship," he added.

"The application costs over £2,000 and there is no refund if you are refused. So you look at the requirements and see that you are eligible, then apply.

"You send all the documents for that, and then it is rejected because of another law, which is not included on the website. It is not fair.

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