Has FIFA failed to protect Gabon’s young footballers?
Witnesses tell the BBC of a ‘culture of abuse’ within training camps.
Africa Daily · BBC World Service
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Show Notes
“In Gabon, football and paedophilia go hand in hand, we were all told the stories.” In December 2021 a British newspaper named several leading figures in Gabonese football, alleged to have sexually abused hundreds of boys over a period of decades.
The former head coach of Gabon's youth teams, Patrick Assoumou Eyi - widely known as "Capello" - admitted charges of "raping, grooming and exploiting young players" and remains in prison awaiting sentencing. Three other coaches were arrested but deny the allegations made against them. But did the football authorities - in both Gabon and further afield - fail to protect these children? And are they continuing to fail them? For today’s Africa Daily, Alan@kasujja talks to Khadidiatou Cissé, the reporter who worked on the documentary. To see ‘Predators on the Pitch: Inside Africa’s Biggest Football Scandal’ go to the BBC News Africa YouTube page.