New fire was kindled in the age debate about Youssoufa Moukoko from Borussia Dortmund. Thanks to President and ex-world-class striker Samuel Eto’o, Cameroon’s football association recently uncovered a major age fraud: a whopping 32 players from the country’s U17 team cheated on their age, but were caught by MRI scan. Did the BVB prodigy also cheat?
Although Moukoko is a German citizen, he was born in Cameroon. The striker came to Germany at the age of ten – by adoption in 2014.
This is where the first contradiction begins. Because Josef Moukoko, who is considered to be the biological father until the publication of his adoption in 2022, states that he received a passport directly at the birth of his adopted son. A description that is not without controversy.
The fact that the youngster had an 18-year-old girlfriend at the age of twelve also caused many question marks. At 16, a new partner was even 23.
Age trickery in Cameroon on the agenda
New momentum in the case came in mid-2022 when a birth certificate dated July 17, 2000 and bearing the name Youssoufa Mohamadou came into circulation.
Adoptive father Josef had apparently sent this to a journalist, but obtained an injunction in court, which legally prevented publication of the document.
Research by “Spiegel” revealed that forged papers are easy to obtain in Cameroon due to the high level of corruption in the authorities.
A gold mine for clever swindlers who, with a little trickery, can de facto bring significantly older players than youth talents to well-known clubs in Europe, where the “young talents” then earn many times more than in their homeland.
Moukoko, as well as the DFB and his club Borussia Dortmund, have vehemently rejected an age test like that of his Cameroonian compatriots for years. Not entirely wrong, because a completely accurate determination of the true age is not medically possible today.
Some methods, such as examining the wrist bone, usually give valid results, but misjudgments can occur in precocious individuals. However, the story of Youssoufa Moukoko’s real age remains a great mystery.
Ludwig Degmayr