AFCON 2025: CAF Bans 2 Equatorial Guinea Players, Fines Burkina Faso Captain

The Equatorial Guinea Football Federation confirmed on Wednesday that the two players were banned for using offensive language against referee Messie Nkounou of Congo.
The loss had left the team bottom of the group standing.

According to Equatorial Guinea Football Federation, two of the four-match bans have been suspended for one year, meaning the players will serve two matches immediately, with the remaining two suspended.
The suspensions take effect from Wednesday, ruling both players out of Equatorial Guinea’s final group match against Algeria in Rabat.
Also sanctioned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) is Burkina Faso captain Bertrand Traoré, who was fined $10,000 for “offensive remarks” after his team’s 1–0 loss to Algeria.
Traoré, who plays club football with English side Sunderland, had openly criticised the officiating after the match, claiming Burkina Faso were denied a clear penalty and accused the referee of influencing the outcome of the game.
“It’s a shame we lost to a penalty. I believe there was a penalty on me in the opening minutes,” he said, adding that refereeing decisions were “ruining the game.”
“It’s a shame, we lost 1-0 to 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 (swear word) me,” Traoré had said in a post-match interview.
CAF’s disciplinary body ruled that the comments violated its code of conduct, and the Burkinabe Football Federation later disclosed that Traoré expressed regret over his remarks and accepted responsibility for his actions.
