Report: Ex-Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o accused of match-fixing in Cameroon
Champions League and La Liga winner, who is the Cameroonian FA’s president, has been accused of fixing multiple matches and abusing his power in a damning report from The Athletic
Former Barcelona and Inter Milan legend Samuel Eto’o has been accused of match-fixing in Cameroon and aiding certain teams in getting promoted by giving “favourable refereeing decisions”.
In a report by The Athletic, Eto’o is alleged to have abused his power as president of the Cameroonian FA, Fecafoot, to fix matches and incite violence against those who didn’t comply with his demands.
Eto’o, who has played in Spain, Italy, England, Italy and Russia in an illustrious career, was named as the head of the Cameroonian FA in December 2021.
According to reporting from The Athletic, the accusations have come to light after a file was sent to FIFA’s Ethics Committee in July 2023 from former Fecafoot VP Henry Njalla Quan Junior, which contained WhatsApp messages, emails, letters and audio recordings.
The file is also being investigated by the African football federation, CAF.
CAF reportedly told The Athletic the investigation was ongoing but said Eto’o was to be “presumed to be innocent until an appropriate judicial body concludes otherwise”.
Neither FIFA, Eto’o or his lawyers, Vey & Associes, provided a comment when approached by The Athletic.
Njalla Quan Junior has claimed the contents of those communications, some of which are anonymous and indirect and yet to be tested, provide support for his accusations against Eto’o, namely that he has been involved in match-fixing.
One of the major claims from the former VP is that Eto’o arranged for a key match in Cameroon to be fixed. Njalla Quan Junior Academy, which Njalla Quan Junior owns, were facing Kumba City FC in the first leg of the South West Regional League semi-final – the third tier of Cameroonian football.
It is alleged that a phone was put on loudspeaker at half-time during the game so the referees could receive direct instructions from Eto’o himself. The claims are based on conversations Njalla Quan Junior had with an anonymous third party who was privy to the conversation.
Njalla Quan Junior claims Valentine Nkwain, a close associate of Eto’o, made the call. There is apparently evidence that Nkwain was sat near the match delegate during the game, but Nkwain has denied that the call ever happened.
In the second half of that game, Njalla Quan Junior Academy received five red cards and four yellows. The opposition was awarded two debatable penalties, with the first being retaken due to apparent encroachment after the penalty was saved. Over the two legs, Kumba City FC won 3-1.
In his report, Njalla Quan Junior called the game “the most scandalous… in the history of mankind”.
Eto’o has also been accused of aiding Nkwain’s own team, Victoria United, to get promoted to the top division.
An 11-minute voice recording of a conversation between the pair allegedly showed Eto’o suggesting that “there are things that we can do” while warning Nkwain that they would need to be “very discreet”. It’s reported that Eto’o also said that he could suspend referees if need be and set up a further meeting to discuss the matter.
Victoria United then went on to win 11 of their remaining 17 matches, securing promotion to the top division after losing four of their first seven.
Eto’o has previously denied any ulterior motive in this conversation, and he told Gazzetta dello Sport last year that he was just talking to a friend who wanted to make his club the best in the country and that he would try to prevent any referring errors from going against Nkwain’s team.
Nkwain claimed the conversation never happened, but The Athletic confirmed “with a high degree of certainty” that it was Nkwain following a study of the clip by audio analyst company Earshot.
The dossier has been received and acknowledged by FIFA, but that doesn’t mean there will be a full investigation by the Ethics Committee.
Fecafoot held a meeting about the matter on 30 January, but Njalla Quan Junior did not attend, saying the meeting was not fit for purpose.
In July 2023, Njalla Quan Junior was handed a 10-year ban from football by Fecafoot and a £12,000 fine, with the governing body also accusing him of corruption and trying to influence referees.