Two players from Equatorial Guinea have received suspensions for verbally attacking a referee during the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Additionally, Burkina Faso’s captain, Bertrand Traoré, has been fined for comments he made following a group match.
The Equatorial Guinea Football Federation announced on Wednesday that team captain Carlos Akakpo and midfielder Josete Miranda have each been banned for four matches due to their use of inappropriate language towards referee Messie Nkounou from Congo.
This incident took place after Equatorial Guinea’s 1-0 loss to Sudan in their Group E match in Casablanca on Sunday, which left the team at the bottom of the group standings.
The federation stated that two of the four-match bans are suspended for one year, meaning the players will serve two matches immediately, with the other two postponed.
The suspensions are effective from Wednesday, preventing both players from participating in Equatorial Guinea’s final group match against Algeria in Rabat.
In a related matter, Burkina Faso’s captain Bertrand Traoré has been fined $10,000 by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for what were termed “offensive remarks” made after his team’s 1-0 defeat to Algeria.
Traoré, who plays for Sunderland in England, openly criticized the officiating after the match, claiming that Burkina Faso was denied a clear penalty and accusing the referee of affecting the match’s outcome.
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“It’s unfortunate we lost due to a penalty. I believe there was a penalty against me in the opening minutes,” he said, adding that the refereeing decisions were “ruining the game.”
“It’s a shame we lost 1-0 because of a penalty. I think there was a penalty on me in the very first action of the match. The referees are ruining the game. And then, at the end, the referee (expletive) me,” Traoré stated in a post-match interview.
CAF’s disciplinary committee determined that his comments breached its code of conduct. However, the Burkinabe Football Federation later revealed that Traoré expressed remorse for his statements and accepted responsibility for his actions.
