ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Ethiopia soccer officials admitted they fielded an ineligible player in a World Cup qualifier against Botswana by mistake and said they would not appeal any Fifa disciplinary rulings made against them.

"We have evaluated the situation and we came across the issue that we made a mistake," Sahilu Gebremariam, president of the Ethiopian Football Federation, told Reuters. "We accepted the allegation that this was inappropriate. There won't be an appeal from us being lodged."

Ethiopia are now almost certain to be docked three points, meaning South Africa would get a reprieve and may still be able to qualify for the 2014 finals in Brazil.