Football legend and current President of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot), Samuel Eto’o, has been handed a six-month ban from attending Cameroon national team matches. The suspension comes after FIFA found him guilty of breaching its disciplinary code.

The sanction prevents Eto’o from attending all matches involving Cameroon’s men’s and women’s teams across all age groups, including senior and junior levels. The ban stems from incidents that occurred during the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup round-of-16 match between Cameroon and Brazil, played in Bogotá, Colombia, on September 11, 2024.

In a statement, FIFA’s disciplinary committee explained the reason behind the decision: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the President of the Cameroonian Football Association (Fecafoot), Samuel Eto’o, with a six-month ban from attending matches of Cameroon’s representative teams for breaches of articles 13 (Offensive behaviour and violations of the principles of fair play) and 14 (Misconduct of players and officials) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.”

What exactly did Eto’o do?

FIFA has not disclosed the details of Eto’o’s actions during the match, but it confirmed that his behaviour was deemed to have violated the principles of fair play.

Eto’o, who has been the president of Fecafoot since 2021, was officially notified of the ban on Monday, and it takes effect immediately.

This suspension adds to a series of disciplinary actions involving Eto’o, as it comes less than three months after the 43-year-old was fined USD 200,000 by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

CAF’s penalty was imposed following an investigation into Eto’o’s role as an ambassador for the gambling company 1XBet, which violated the governing body’s ethics and integrity guidelines. Eto’o has since appealed that decision and continues to deny any wrongdoing.

The ban is a major development for the Cameroon Football Federation, with the national teams now set to proceed without their president’s presence on the sidelines for the next six months.

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