2024-04-24 10:57:19
Published on :
In an exclusive interview with France 24, the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Patrice Motsepe rejects the accusations of the president of the Cameroonian federation and ex-star Samuel Eto’o, according to whom the CAF is defaming him through an investigation for fixed matches. He also discusses his future at the head of CAF, as well as the alleged cases of sexual assault involving several coaches of youth football teams in Gabon.
In an exclusive interview with France 24, Patrice Motsepe affirms that one of his objectives is for an African country to win the next World Cup, scheduled for 2026. According to him, the last African Cup of Nations, contested in Côte d’Ivoire, was “the most successful” in history. It brought in $80 million thanks, in particular, to doubling the number of sponsors, and attracted more than two billion viewers.
Patrice Motsepe explains that he found “very serious problems” when he arrived at the head of CAF in 2021, particularly at the level of governance and linked to the way in which funds were spent. Its mission was therefore to ensure that the accounts and functioning of the institution regained credibility with sponsors and the public.
As for whether he will be a candidate for his own succession next year, he says one of his goals is to establish a strong foundation and management team so that he can be replaced if necessary. But he does not rule out a second term, insisting on the need not to see the progress made go up in smoke. And to those who think that the real boss of CAF is none other than FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Motsepe retorts that this kind of controversy does not affect him. According to him, this point of view is a relic of a past when Africa was not considered capable of deciding for itself.
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He also rejects the accusations of the president of the Cameroonian federation and ex-star Samuel Eto’o, according to whom CAF is defaming him through an investigation into match-fixing. “No one, starting with me, is above the law,” proclaims the president, affirming that the investigation is carried out according to the rules of the CAF and with respect for the presumption of innocence.
Regarding the alleged cases of sexual assault involving several youth team coaches in Gabon, he says that CAF takes the subject very seriously. According to him, the fact that the president of the Gabonese federation, accused of not having informed the authorities of these abuses, was recently re-elected to the CAF executive committee is not a sign of contempt for the victims. presumed. The CAF addresses this problem “with urgency”, but is often hampered by the fact that suspected persons are sometimes imprisoned without being tried in their own country.
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