Samuel Eto’o explains his support for the FIFA president

The president of the Cameroonian Football Federation is not backing down, despite the criticism sparked by his comments made a few days ago on CNN Sports in support of Gianni Infantino’s record.

In an interview with L’Equipe, Samuel Eto’o fully stands by his position. For the former Cameroonian striker-turned-football administrator, the controversy primarily reveals a lack of understanding of the realities of African football. He believes that the perception of the issues at stake cannot be the same.

“We will never be able to see things in the same way as the big countries. People don’t realise the challenges faced by the presidents of football associations in Africa. Without the governments, do you think we’d even be able to play football? In some associations, 95 or 100% of the funding comes from states already grappling with enormous challenges. ”

Samuel Eto’o goes further by attributing an important role to the FIFA President in the development of African football’s infrastructure. For him, this is a project whose impact will be felt in the future.

“Today, President Gianni Infantino is giving Africans the chance to dream of developing football. He has helped African football to improve; otherwise, you wouldn’t have so many football association headquarters built. His project will help to develop talent. In a few years’ time, when we have players like Roger Milla and (Kylian) Mbappé, it will be thanks to this funding.”