Cameroon AFCON star Wilfried Nathan Douala, 17, suspended due to age fraud

Metro.co.uk | Wilfried Nathan Douala, the youngest member of Cameroon’s Africa Cup of Nations squad, is one of 62 players to be suspended for age fraud.

Douala was a surprise inclusion in Cameroon’s squad for the tournament earlier this year given that he was uncapped and playing for Victoria United in Cameroon’s first division.

The midfielder’s registration for AFCON listed his birthday as 15 May 2006, which put him at 17-years-old and made him the youngest player at the tournament.

However, Douala has now been included on a 62-man list of players suspended by the Cameroonian Football Federation for falsifying his age.

In total, 15 clubs in Cameroon have at least one player suspended for age fraud.

La meilleure gestu’ de l’histoire. ??pic.twitter.com/CmsjV1M3jy

— Instant Foot ?? (@lnstantFoot) March 10, 2024

? 62 joueurs dont Nathan Douala et plusieurs autres internationaux sont provisoirement déclarés inéligibles par la FECAFOOT pour les play-offs (MTN Elite One) pour double identité :

??Yong Sport academy (13 Joueurs)

– Arnaud Messanga Messanga
– Fabrice Kamaka Fils
– Njiberu… pic.twitter.com/jn3iWJZdQ7

— AllezLesLions (@AllezLesLions) March 11, 2024

Douala did not make an appearance for Cameroon at AFCON but was often seen dancing with his teammates on the way to the dressing room during the tournament.

Last year, 21 members of Cameroon’s 30-player squad had failed age tests before the Under-17 AFCON tournament in Algeria.

Samuel Eto’o, president of the Cameroon’s football governing body, ordered every player to take an age test ‘in order to put an end to the tampering with civil status records which have, in the past, tarnished the image of Cameroon football’.

Players undergo an age test by having an MRI scan of the wrist to examine bone fusion in the joint.