FIFA's Lifetime Ban on Gabon Coach Marks a Step Forward in Addressing Football Abuse

FIFA's lifetime ban of Patrick Assoumou Eyi for sexually abusing young players is acknowledged as a significant move by the players' union Fifpro. However, concerns remain about numerous other perpetrators still unchecked within Gabonese football.

FIFA's decision to impose a lifetime ban on Patrick Assoumou Eyi, a former youth coach for Gabon’s national teams, has been welcomed by the global players' union, Fifpro. This move comes after Eyi admitted to multiple instances of sexual abuse directed at young football players, a situation that originated from allegations first reported by the British outlet, The Guardian, back in 2021.

Eyi, who has been under investigation by FIFA’s independent ethics committee, was found guilty of raping, grooming, and exploiting players, many of whom were minors at the time of the alleged incidents spanning from 2006 to 2021. As a consequence of these findings, he has been fined one million Swiss francs (approximately £880,000; $1.1 million) and is currently in prison.

Loic Alves, legal counsel for Fifpro, emphasized that while the ban on Eyi is a "positive first step," it is merely the beginning. "This is just one man that has been sanctioned, and there are many more perpetrators," Alves stated during an interview on the BBC’s Focus on Africa program.

In 2023, a gripping investigation by BBC Africa uncovered a sexual abuse network affecting all levels of Gabonese football over the past thirty years. Eyewitness accounts revealed that multiple victims had experienced abuse, some as young as 14 years old. An anonymous victim expressed mixed feelings about the ban, noting the need to dismantle the broader network of abuse rather than stopping at individual consequences.

Moreover, governing bodies such as FIFA and Gabon's national football federation, Fegafoot, have faced scrutiny for their failure to protect young athletes from such abuse, although both have denied any wrongdoing. As the discussion continues, many stakeholders call for systematic changes and accountability to prevent further incidents and provide justice for victims.