Andreas Cubas misses matches in Paraguay after washing his passport

In a very literal sense, Andrés Cubas has been put through the wringer. To be precise: the Paraguayan midfielder has had his pants put through the wringer – passport and all.

Andrés Cubas misses duty in Paraguay after washing his passport

It’s not often that a laundry mishap has international repercussions, but that was the case for Cubas, who was unable to feature for his country in friendlies against the US and Mexico after leaving his passport in a pair of trousers that had been washed.

The 29-year-old Vancouver Whitecaps player moved quickly to resolve the issue once it came to light, but was unable to complete the necessary paperwork in time to join Gustavo Alfaro’s side in Florida, where a tough encounter ended in a 2-1 win for Mauricio Pochettino’s US side, and in Texas, where Paraguay defeated Mexico 2-1.

“He messed up, he forgot it in his pants,” Cubas’ father Francisco explained in a television interview. “The lady who works there didn’t notice either and they put them in the washing machine. He’s really annoyed.”

Footballers and passports: a story of misfortune and incompetence

Be that as it may, Cubans shouldn’t be too hard on themselves. The midfielder is just the latest in a long line of footballers whose travel plans have been put on hold due to misfortune, absent-mindedness or simply incompetence.

Lamine Yamal’s joy at Spain’s 6-0 win over Turkey in September, a match in which he provided two assists, was marred when he could not find his travel documents as he left the Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium. Forced to get off the team bus and rummage through his luggage, the Barcelona winger cut a frustrated figure as he returned to the dressing room, where he continued the search in vain.

Yamal was eventually assisted by the Spanish Football Federation, who settled matters with the authorities, allowing the 18-year-old to return home. Former Wales manager Chris Coleman, who missed his team’s preparations for a World Cup qualifier in Macedonia in 2013 after losing his passport, would no doubt sympathize.

The passport palaver that landed Ronaldinho in jail

Yamal, however, can consider himself lucky. There was no such reprieve for his Camp Nou predecessor Ronaldinho, who was jailed for 32 days and spent a further four months under house arrest in 2020 after being accused, along with his brother and manager Roberto de Assis, of entering Paraguay with forged documents.

True to form, the Brazilian legend made the most of his experience by scoring a half-dozen goals in a prison futsal tournament, making an unlikely addition to his roll of fame in the form of a 16kg suckling pig. The biggest irony? As a holder of a Brazilian national identity card, he did not need a passport to enter Paraguay at all.

A common problem among players, in an era when so many qualify for national teams outside the country where they were born, is simply grabbing the wrong passport.

That was the fate that befell former West Ham striker Michail Antonio last year when he visited the Samba Stars Academy in Ghana. Antonio planned to fly back to Britain before joining his Jamaican teammates in the United States. However, as he could not find his British passport, he traveled with his Jamaican documents, unaware that he would need a visa to return. In that case, he had to get an emergency passport to get home and because he couldn’t get a US visa with his Jamaican passport, he missed the trip to the US.

‘It was a terrible fine: £300,000. Van Gaal was so angry!’

That may seem disorganised, but that’s nothing compared to the mess that former Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo found himself in after failing to renew his passport in time before a tour to the US in 2015. The resulting delay meant he was unable to obtain the correct visa and incurred the wrath of Louis van Gaal, United’s then manager, who imposed a huge fine on him.

“It took too long with my passport and my visa, and I couldn’t go,” Rojo later told FourFourTwo. “It was a terrible fine: £300,000. Van Gaal was so angry.”

However, even Rojo couldn’t outdo former midfielder and pundit Robbie Savage, who showed up with his wife’s passport for a flight to Brazil’s World Cup last summer. It was the second time he did it.