Cameroon is one of the favorites for the Africa Cup of Nations. There was a lot of unrest among the “Indomitable Lions” in preparation, including a noisy change of coach. At the center of the turbulence is the powerful association boss Samuel Eto’o.
With five titles, Cameroon is the record winner at the African Cup of Nations. Accordingly, the opening game on Wednesday (December 24th, 2025) against Gabon is eagerly awaited, especially since the “irrepressible lions”, as the team is called, have recently had to struggle primarily with internal quarrels. The missed World Cup qualification was followed by the replacement of the controversial coach Marc Brys.
The new national coach, the experienced Cameroonian David Pagou, is under special observation: he was appointed to the position just three weeks ago by the head of the Cameroon association, the former star striker Samuel Eto’o. Pagou’s predecessor Brys had fallen out of favor with the powerful association boss Eto’o after he missed qualifying for the World Cup with the highly rated Cameroonians.
Association leader Eto’o is pulling the strings
However, the Belgian coach did not want to accept his replacement easily, as France’s sports newspaper L’Equipe reported, among others. Brys sees himself as a victim of a power struggle between football icon Eto’o, who pulls the strings in the association both economically and sportingly, and Cameroon’s sports minister, who in turn formally concludes contracts with national coaches. Brys also refers to this: He announced on Belgian television that he would remain in office, “until I am released by the Ministry of Sports”. Brys insists on the validity of his contract, which runs until autumn 2026.
Ex-coach Brys criticizes his successor
After the squad announcement for the Africa Cup, Brys publicly criticized association boss Eto’o (“He wanted to get rid of me from the start”) and also talked about the composition of the team – especially about who he would have nominated himself. These included the offensive veterans Eric Maxim Choupo Moting, Vincent Aboubakar and goalkeeper André Onana – none of whom were called up for the Africa Cup by the new coach Pagou. The dispute was picked up by European media, including Sportschau.
With his offensive PR on his own behalf, the disempowered coach probably wants to send a signal to the association that he will not simply be thrown out without a severance payment and that he is prepared to take steps under labor law if necessary.
Cameroon’s national team is now being trained by his successor Pagou, who moved into Agadir with the team at the Africa Cup of Nations. In a remote corner of Morocco, some peace and quiet for preparation is certainly not the worst thing after turbulent weeks with the “Indomitable Lions”.