Samuel Eto’o, the president of Cameroon Football Association (FECAFOOT), has come under fire regarding a £567,570 payment connected to Cameroon’s friendly match against Russia last October, following reports that funds destined for FECAFOOT’s account may have ended up in his personal bank account in Qatar. Editorial Standards
The debate has resurfaced, reporting that according to official documents investigated by the newspaper, Russian Football Union was directed to pay two payments totaling £567,570 into a Qatari bank account owned by Samuel Eto’o and located at the Qatar National Bank in Doha.
The match for which the money was paid by Russia in Moscow last October 12, 2023 and the deal according to investigated documents involved an initial 80% share of the agreed payment £455,056 which was followed by another amount totaling £112,514.There has been some concern regarding financial transparency within FECAFOOT, and the query on why money owed to the federation ended up in Eto’o’s private account.
Documents showing Benot Angbwa, the FECAFOOT’s national teams coordinator at that time, instructing Russian authorities by a dated letter from October 2, 2023, to credit the amount of £455,056 into Eto’o’s account in Qatar appear alongside banking details from the match showing Eto’o’s name as owner of the specified account.
There is now criticism from ex-officials of FECAFOOT stating that they do not know where the money went once it arrived in the mentioned account.
They have taken their queries to the ethics committee of the world’s governing football bodies the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), because they could not deduce, from existing records, if the money was eventually transferred to FECAFOOT’s official bank account.
Therefore, the primary controversy would be, how, not whether the payment was made.Local reports from Cameroon mention that the arrangement involving Samuel Eto’o’s private account was necessitated by difficulties with the money, owing to sanctions faced by Russia authorities around the arrangement cited by the absence of an acceptable foreign currency account outside of Cameroon forced the option of Eto’o’s Qatar account, to quicken money transfers, though some former officials believe such arrangement was not necessary. Corrections Policy
Back in the month of October, Camfoot, a Cameroonian publication had already reported that the total contract payment as stipulated in their copy was £567,570, with the banked account having Eto’o’s details at Qatar National Bank.
The same publication had initially claimed that FECAFOOT validated reports containing such documents and acknowledged they were processed after it was agreed by FECAFOOT’s emergency committee.
The former officials points that, despite the acknowledgement by FECAFOOT, what eventually happened to the funds from Eto’o’s bank account remain unclear; importantly no confirmation that the funds was officially and rightfully lodged in FECAFOOT’s bank account has been given.
Both Samuel Eto’o and FECAFOOT had neither responded to The Time’s quest for explanations prior to the newspaper going to the press for publication clarifying that there have been claims in Cameroon about the money ending up in the bank account of the federation and be fully accounted for.
This has sparked even greater controversies surrounding Samuel Eto’o’s tenure at FECAFOOT since his election to the post in December 2021 and the international football bodies show clearly that he is still the president been supported in his election, by FIFA and CAF (Confederation of African Football) FECAFOOT’s new and improved headquarters in Yaounde which opened doors in May 2026, for instance, was constructed with assistance through FIFA’s COVID-19 grant funds.
Additionally, the FECAFOOT president was last September banned by FIFA Disciplinary Committee from overseeing the national representative matches of Cameroon for a period of six months for offenses and misconduct at a FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. Editorial Ethics & Independence
The recent revelation on the 567,570 payment comes against the backdrop of widespread concerns about FIFA’s governance and the closeness between Eto’o and the FIFA president Gianni Infantino, with The Times mentioning that Eto’o’s name appeared in FIFA legal cases in the United States regarding the aborted FIFA Forward Enterprise plan which had opposition from European stakeholders like UEFA.
FIFA is however maintaining that its Disciplinary and Judicial committees are self-sufficient.Until something better emerges, it only proves that there has indeed been a payment of 567,570 and Eto’o has been named as receiving bank account holder but evidence is inconclusive that Samuel Eto’o engaged in illegal misappropriation of funds from FECAFOOT till further verification. Nevertheless, FECAFOOT will face more pressure to release a clear statement on the payment.