AFCON 2025: Equatorial Guinea Players Gets ban Over Referee Abuse

Two Equatorial Guinea players have been handed disciplinary sanctions at the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) after verbally abusing a match official, while Burkina Faso captain Bertrand Traoré has been fined for post-match comments directed at refereeing decisions.

The Equatorial Guinea Football Federation confirmed on Wednesday that team captain Carlos Akakpo and midfielder Josete Miranda were each issued a four-match suspension for using offensive language towards Congolese referee Messie Nkounou. The incident followed Equatorial Guinea’s 1–0 loss to Sudan in their Group E fixture played in Casablanca on Sunday, a result that left the team at the bottom of the group standings.

According to the federation, two matches of each suspension have been suspended for a period of one year, meaning both players will serve an immediate two-match ban. The sanctions take effect from Wednesday, effectively ruling Akakpo and Miranda out of Equatorial Guinea’s final group match against Algeria in Rabat.

In a related development, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has fined Burkina Faso captain Bertrand Traoré $10,000 for what it described as offensive remarks made after his side’s 1–0 defeat to Algeria. Traoré had publicly criticised the officiating, claiming his team was denied a clear penalty and suggesting that the referee’s decisions influenced the outcome of the match.

CAF’s disciplinary panel ruled that the comments breached its code of conduct. However, the Burkinabe Football Federation later disclosed that Traoré acknowledged his error, expressed regret over the remarks, and accepted responsibility for his actions.