The Football Federation of the Central African Republic (FCF) has opposed the decision by the country’s Minister of Sports appointing Cameroon legend Rigobert Song Bahanag as head coach of the senior men’s national team.
Song ,48, was appointed on Monday evening through a decree issued by the Minister of Youth, Sports, and Civic Education, Rodolphe Héritier Doneng. The Cameroon legend had earlier met with president Faustin Archange Touadera prior to the official announcement of his appointment.
Song replaces Swiss coach Raoul Savoy, who was fired in October following the Wild Beasts’ unsuccessful qualification campaign for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations to take place in Morocco in December. CAR is one of eight countries that have never played the continental tournament.
The Ministerial decree said Song who was sacked from Cameroon in February last year will be assisted by Sebastien Ngato who qualified CAR for the African Nations Championship (CHAN) to take place in Kenya, Unganda and Tanzania in August. Also appointed as assistant coaches to the former Indomitable Lions coach were the former captain of the CAR national team Eloge Enza-Yamissi and Frenchman Eric Caballero.
However, in a release following an extraordinary executive committee meeting on Tuesday, the Central African Republic FA said it learned of the appointments with “consternation and surprise through the social media”.
Like has been the case with other African countries including Cameroon with the appointment of Song’s successor, Marc Brys whose appointment last year was contested by the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT), the FA said it was not consulted and so “does not recognize the unilateral decision” of the Minister appointing the former Cameroon gaffer because it had decided to “nationalize the position of head coach” of the national football team.
An interim technical staff of entirely Central Africans under the guide of former captain, Eloge Enza Yamissi has been in charge of the Wild Beasts since the departure of Raoul Savoy in October last year.
The unilateral decision, the FCF said in the press release is in violation of the law that says such decisions are the prerogatives of the executive committee of the FA.
