Elia Caprile has obtained dual citizenship. He is no longer just Italian, but now also holds an Albanian passport, thanks to the signature of the president of Albania, who approved the request of the goalkeeper who currently plays for Cagliari. However, this does not mean that the Sardinian club's goalkeeper will be able to wear the Albanian national team jersey soon and easily, as FIFA's rules for dual citizenship are strict and require the fulfillment of several conditions that Caprile, to date, does not meet: he has no Albanian relatives or ancestors and has not resided in Albania.
The goalkeeper has obtained an Albanian passport thanks to his family ties with his partner, Emily Toshkollari, of Albanian origin. Although they are not officially married, they have been together for several years and in November 2025 they became parents for the first time, with the birth of their son, Edoardo. It was Emily who is said to have proposed to Elia the opportunity to request a new passport, which the President of Albania, Bajram Begaj, signed at the insistence of the Albanian Football Federation (FSHF). The Federation has requested the acceleration of bureaucratic procedures, with the aim of gathering the goalkeeper into the national team led by Rolando Maran, who took over as coach of the national team on May 19.
Elia Caprile has been given an Albanian passport🇦🇱 Seems like we will have a new too class keeper ready for November😎 https://t.co/RHiHmsjpnq
— Albanian football🇦🇱 (@ALBfootball) October 23, 2026
However, even after receiving the document, it is currently difficult for Elia Caprile to play for Albania. The obstacle is not so much related to the fact that in the past he has been part of the Italian national team, but to a regulatory issue determined by FIFA. It is true that Caprile has been called up to the first Italian national team, but has never made his debut, staying on the bench. This happened on November 7, 2025, for the World Cup qualifying matches against Moldova and Norway. Meanwhile, he has played two matches with Italy U-21, against Japan and Serbia, on March 24, 2023, but this does not prevent him from being called up by another first-level national team.
Why can't he play for Albania?
The real obstacle is Article 7 of FIFA's regulations, according to which possession of a country's passport is not sufficient to play for the respective national team. The article in question is clear:
“Any player who […] wishes to represent a new federation on the basis of an acquired nationality must meet at least one of the following conditions:
a) The player was born in the territory of the federation in question;
b) The biological mother or biological father of the player was born in the territory of the federation in question;
c) The player's grandmother or grandfather was born in the territory of the federation in question;
d) The player has lived continuously for at least five years in the territory of the federation in question, after reaching the age of 18.
FIFA requires what is known as a “genuine link”, that is, an objective biological or territorial connection. Marriage or obtaining citizenship through political procedures does not automatically meet these sporting criteria. For this reason, despite the dual passport, it is currently very difficult for Elia Caprile to obtain permission to wear the Albanian jersey.
