Samuel Eto'o cleared to run in CAF elections after winning appeal

Samuel Eto’o, a four-time African Footballer of the Year, has successfully secured his place as a candidate for the upcoming elective congress of the Confederation of African Football, following an initial disqualification from the race.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has supported Eto’o's appeal regarding his exclusion from the CAF executive committee elections scheduled for next Wednesday in Cairo.

Eto’o, who serves as the president of the Cameroon Football Federation, was removed from the candidate list by CAF’s governance committee in January. However, he contested this decision at the highest level of sports arbitration, and the ruling was made in his favor.

“Following a hearing on March 3rd 2025, it is ordered that the CAF executive committee includes Eto’o in the list of candidates for election to the committee,” said a CAS statement.

“The CAS Panel considered that it was presented sufficient information to overturn the CAF Executive Committee’s decision concerning Eto’o’s ineligibility.

"It will be for the CAF Extraordinary General Assembly Meeting on March 12th to make its own evaluation of the candidates.”

CAF did not provide specific reasons for the exclusion of Eto'o in January; however, the 43-year-old former striker from Cameroon faced a suspension last year imposed by both FIFA and CAF.

In September, FIFA prohibited him from attending national team matches for a duration of six months due to violations of disciplinary regulations, stemming from allegations of verbally abusing match officials during the Under-20 Women’s World Cup held in Colombia.

Earlier in the year, CAF imposed a ban on Eto'o following an investigation into alleged violations of its ethical and integrity standards, which arose when he accepted a position as an ambassador for a betting company.

This ban, along with a $200,000 fine, was subsequently lifted upon appeal.

Despite being regarded as one of Africa's greatest players, Eto'o has emerged as a contentious figure within the governance of football, both domestically and internationally.

CAF is scheduled to conduct elections for its key positions next week, including the presidency and the continent's representatives on the FIFA Council.

Although the deadline for candidate submissions was in November, the governing body of African football has yet to release a list of candidates, with the election approaching in less than a week.

Nonetheless, CAF president Patrice Motsepe is running unopposed for a second four-year term.