FIFA suspends Eto’o!.

The sanction was pronounced Monday in an official statement. According to FIFA statement, Eto’o was handed the ban for offensive behaviour and violations of the principles of fair play and misconduct of players and officials, as per articles 13 and 14, respectively, of the FIFA disciplinary code. 

FIFA went further to state that the sanction was imposed in connection with the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup round of 16 match between Brazil and Cameroon. The match took place on September 11 in Bogota, Columbia. 

FIFA has not given any further explanation of what transpired. However, it is important to note that the U20 Lionesses, who were making their debut at the youth international tournament, were knocked out after losing 1-3.

Some reports claim that Eto’o may have contested the win, pointing at poor officiating from the referee. 

Following the FIFA decision, Eto’o will only be authorised to attend matches of all categories of the men and women’s team as from March 2025. 

This will be nine months to FECAFOOT election where Eto’o, experts say, will be seeking re-election, after his ascension to the top job on December 11, 2021. 

It is not the first time that Eto’o is in trouble. On July 4, the disciplinary board of the Confederation of African Football, CAF, fined Eto’o 200,000 US dollars, approximately over 117 billion FCFA, for seriously violating the principles of ethics, integrity and sportsmanship as specified by article 2, paragraph 23 of CAF statutes. 

This was because Eto’o signed a brand ambassador contract with a betting company. However, Eto’o was also cleared of charges of alleged manipulation of football matches and violating the principles of ethics and integrity. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3246 of Tuesday October 01, 2024