🔗 Share this article Equatorial Guinea Duo Issued Multi-Game Suspension for Official Abuse at Africa Cup of Nations. Carlos Akapo will miss his side's final tournament fixture at Afcon 2025. The National Thunder skipper Carlos Akapo and fellow squad member Josete Miranda have both been banned for four games for verbally attacking the referee after their 1-0 defeat by Sudan at the 2025 Afcon. The ruling was made by a governing body committee after it examined the official's match report from the tournament encounter on Sunday, a loss that sealed the team's elimination from the tournament. The referee reported that the two footballers "repeatedly directed abusive and offensive comments" towards him and his assistants after the final whistle. "These remarks were made in a context of intense frustration stemming from the loss, but nevertheless constitute a grave breach of the standards of sportsmanship and fair play as well as the disciplinary regulations," noted the referee. Two matches of the individual suspensions for the two players have been deferred for a period of one year. Immediate Consequences Both players will be unavailable for their nation's last group match against Algeria on Wednesday. In a related development, the nation's football federation has been penalized a amount of $10,000 after its technical staff and players engaged in "persistent and abusive complaints" against decisions by the refereeing team. The match report detailed there was "a steady decline in behaviour on the touchline" following an unfortunate deflection by Equatorial Guinea defender Saul Coco in the second half. Further Governing Body Action Elsewhere, the tournament organizers have also fined Stallions skipper Bertrand Traore the sum of $10,000 for "offensive remarks" uttered in a post-match interview following his team's defeat to their Group E rivals.
Carlos Akapo will miss his side's final tournament fixture at Afcon 2025. The National Thunder skipper Carlos Akapo and fellow squad member Josete Miranda have both been banned for four games for verbally attacking the referee after their 1-0 defeat by Sudan at the 2025 Afcon. The ruling was made by a governing body committee after it examined the official's match report from the tournament encounter on Sunday, a loss that sealed the team's elimination from the tournament. The referee reported that the two footballers "repeatedly directed abusive and offensive comments" towards him and his assistants after the final whistle. "These remarks were made in a context of intense frustration stemming from the loss, but nevertheless constitute a grave breach of the standards of sportsmanship and fair play as well as the disciplinary regulations," noted the referee. Two matches of the individual suspensions for the two players have been deferred for a period of one year. Immediate Consequences Both players will be unavailable for their nation's last group match against Algeria on Wednesday. In a related development, the nation's football federation has been penalized a amount of $10,000 after its technical staff and players engaged in "persistent and abusive complaints" against decisions by the refereeing team. The match report detailed there was "a steady decline in behaviour on the touchline" following an unfortunate deflection by Equatorial Guinea defender Saul Coco in the second half. Further Governing Body Action Elsewhere, the tournament organizers have also fined Stallions skipper Bertrand Traore the sum of $10,000 for "offensive remarks" uttered in a post-match interview following his team's defeat to their Group E rivals.