Article by Daniel Scorpie – Published on Thursday, 11 December 2025, 20:52 / Updated on Thursday, 11 December 2025 20:55
Incredible and at the same time comical situation for the Cameroonian national team. 10 days before the start of the Africa Cup of Nations 2025, a competition that will end on January 18, the organizers in Morocco were surprised to receive different lists of players: one from the president of the Federation, Samuel Eto'o, and another from the selector Marc Brys, whom the former great striker fired!
The Cameroon national team's preparations for the participation in CAN 2025, scheduled between December 21 and January 10, have been seriously disrupted by the existing conflicts between the federation and the selector Marc Brys, on the one hand, and by the tension created by the dictatorial decisions taken by Samuel Eto'o, to remove unwanted players from the books, on the other.
Eto'o, who completed four years as president of the Cameroon Football Federation, is in a bitter dispute with coach Marc Brys, who, according to sources cited by the Daily Mail tabloid, refuses to resign.
Officially dismissed by the Federation, Marc Brys remains under contract with the Ministry of Sports until September 2026
The Belgian coach has not been officially sacked and remains under contract with the Ministry of Sports until September 2026, although Eto'o has firmly informed him that his tenure at the helm of the “Untamed Lions” has come to an end.
The federation announced the 28-man squad after an emergency Executive Committee meeting on December 1, naming David Pagou, not Brys, as the national team coach for CAN 2025.
Pagou is officially listed on the FIFA website and he also held a press conference last week to give details on the composition of the squad and Cameroon's ambitions for the competition in Morocco, being also accompanied by a completely new technical staff, named by Eto'o.
There are also some surprising absences from the squad, including former Manchester United goalkeeper André Onana, former Bayern Munich striker Eric Choupo-Moting and 'veteran' goalscorer Vincent Aboubakar.
Marc Brys: “From day one, he insulted me and I reacted. Eto'o left out key players and leaders”
According to The Sun, Eto'o is rumored to have deliberately asked for Aboubakar to be left out of the squad to prevent him from breaking his national team goalscoring record. Aboubakar (33 years old) has 12 more goals to become the top scorer.
The chaos escalated on Wednesday when Brys, refusing to accept the sacking, released a second Cameroon squad which reinstated the three previously omitted players.
“Eto'o always aimed to eliminate me as quickly as possible. From the first moment, he insulted me and I reacted. I was too strong an opponent for him.” said Marc Brys for the Flemish station VTM NIEUWS.
Referring to the squad where Onana, Choupo-Moting and Aboubakar were out of place, Brys added: “Eto'o left out key players and leaders. Because of course he made the selection.”
It's incredible, but it doesn't really surprise me. Coming from someone who is narcissistic and thinks he is the best. As long as there is no note signed by the Presidency of the Republic by which David Pagou is appointed selector, I will remain in office. This is not up for debate and has been happening in Cameroon for at least 30 years
– Marc Brycethe Cameroon coach
