The election of four-time African Footballer of the Year Samuel Eto’o on to Caf’s decision-making executive committee was among the big talking points from Wednesday’s events in Cairo.
Eto’o, president of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot), was elected unopposed as he was the only candidate from the central Africa region.
Last week, the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld an appeal by Eto’o, external who won the right to be included on the list of candidates after initially being ruled out of the contest by Caf’s governance committee in January.
The 44-year-old former Cameroon striker was suspended last year by both Fifa and Caf for violating disciplinary regulations.
Caf had banned him after an inquiry into purported breaches of its ethical and integrity standards when he took up a role as ambassador for a betting company.
The ban and a $200,000 fine were later lifted on appeal.
Eto’o was greeted warmly by delegates around him when his name was announced along with the five other elected members on Caf’s executive committee.
The former Barcelona and Inter Milan striker has been in charge of Fecafoot since December 2021 but has seen his tenure mired in controversy.
Last September he received a six-match ban from attending Cameroon games while one former international team-mate described him as a “dictator” for his handling of the appointment of Indomitable Lions head coach Marc Brys.
Source – BBC
