Several Cubs under 17 years of age will not participate in the tournament of the Union of Central African Football Federations (Uniffac) of the category, scheduled for 2023 in Limbe  and qualifying for the African Championship of Nations (Chan) U17.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, December 28, Fecafoot announced that “21 players out of the 30 currently in training have been rejected after the MRI tests“. The federation says that they “were immediately removed from the group” and that “measures were immediately taken for their numerical replacement”. Fecafoot justifies this measure by the need “to put an end to the tampering with the civil status which has, in the past, tarnished the image of the Cameroonian football governing body“, the document reads.

Cameroon has more than once been pinned for age fraud during international competitions. During the African Cup of Nations (CAN) U17 in Tanzania in 2019, three footballers of the Cameroonian selection had been dismissed and did not take part in the competition after MRI tests performed beforehand on players. Last June, Fecafoot announced the “opening of an investigation procedure” against 44 players and the presidents of their respective clubs, suspected of “forgery (cheating on age and/or identity) and complicity”.