Eto’o: Infantino giving Africa opportunity to develop football

Cameroon Football Federation President Samuel Eto’o has defended his decision to support Gianni Infantino in the forthcoming FIFA presidential election, arguing that the FIFA president has expanded opportunities for African countries to develop football.

Eto’o, a former Cameroon international, told L’Équipe that African football federations operate under vastly different financial conditions from their European counterparts, making it difficult for them to share the same perspective on FIFA’s policies and priorities.

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“We can never have the same perception of things. When you see some federations with budgets of €150,000, how can they compete with the big countries?” Eto’o said.

Eto’o credits FIFA Forward for African development

The former Barcelona and Inter Milan striker highlighted FIFA’s Forward programme, which provides financial support to member associations for football development.

Eto’o said the programme had helped finance the headquarters of the Cameroonian Football Federation and could play a significant role in developing more football talent across Africa.

“Today, President Infantino is giving Africans the opportunity to dream of developing football,” he added.

Eto’o rejects UEFA’s influence over FIFA

Eto’o also addressed the growing tensions between Infantino and UEFA over the FIFA…