A top Swiss football official has suggested that dual citizens should only be allowed to play for their first country if they drop their second nationality.
Swiss football federation general secretary Alex Miescher said he was worried that players could benefit from Switzerland's youth development programs, only to play for other national teams at senior level.
The Swiss side, which was eliminated in the second round at the World Cup after a 1-0 defeat to Sweden on Tuesday, draws heavily on second generation immigrants, many from the former Yugoslavia and some from African countries.
The issue was pushed into the spotlight at the World Cup after Swiss players Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri, who are ethnic Albanians and of Kosovar heritage, were fined by FIFA for celebrating their goals in the 2-1 win over Serbia with a gesture which appeared to imitate the eagle displayed on Albania's flag.
"Do we want dual citizens?" said Miescher.
"There should be a plan where players with several nationalities could be tied to the Swiss national team at an early stage.
"The events with the double eagles have shown that there is a problem."
He said players are taking advantage of the system.
"We hear many promises. And then the player turns 21, and decides for another country, because he sees greater chances for international appearances," said Miescher.
"I find it shocking that we have no leverage there. Such a player has taken away a very valuable, expensive training place ... maybe we could say that the doors to funding programs are open only to junior players who do not have dual citizens.
"Today, we benefit from the strength of our national team. But if Bosnia, Croatia, Albania and certain African countries were present at a future World Cup, we could have trained many players for other nations."
