The well documented rift between the Samuel Eto’o led Cameroon Football Federation and Belgian coach Marc Brys has come to an end but not without a final bang after the Belgian trainer was dismissed mere days before the start of the 2025 AFCON.
The bi-annual competition kicks off on December 21 in Morocco with Cameroon drawn in Group F alongside Gabon, Mozambique and Cote D’Ivoire who are the reigning champions.
Cameroon’s Football Federation announced Brys’ sack via a strongly worded statement that accused the former OH Leuven head coach of subterfuge and unprofessionalism.
His dismissal comes on the back of Cameroon’s failure to qualify to the 2026 FIFA World Cup after losing 1-0 to DR Congo in the African leg of the Intercontinental Playoffs.
Brys was appointed by Cameroon’s Sports Ministry in April 2024 but had a public falling out with Eto’o that led to his dismissal. However, in a dramatic turn of events, he was reinstated two days later with Eto’o apologising.
Sections of the statement announcing Brys’ dismissal cited “professional failure“, “inciting players against” the Federation and “subterfuge to evade his professional obligation to hold press conferences“.
Brys has since been replaced by one of his assistant coaches, David Pagou, who is a 56 year old Cameroonian coach who has coached Cameroon football clubs like PWD Bamenda and Coton Sport. With Bamenda, he won the Cameroonian league title and Cameroonian Cup.
Pagou has gone on to name a 28-man team for the AFCON with big names like goalkeeper Andre Onana and Franck Zambo Anguissa not included. Scroll down to view the statement announcing Cameroon’s Football Federation’s dismissal of Marc Brys as head coach of it’s National Men’s Football Team.
