FECAFOOT Finally Inaugurates Warda Headquarters 16 Years After Foundation Stone Was Laid

The Fédération Camerounaise de Football (FECAFOOT) will officially inaugurate its headquarters in Warda, Yaoundé, this Wednesday, May 13, 16 years after the foundation stone was laid.

The building looks stunning at first sight from an aesthetic standpoint. It is a complete transformation from what was once a hideout for street thugs and a dumping ground for animal carcasses.

The project survived four different FECAFOOT administrations before its eventual completion: Iya Mohamed, Tombi A Roko, Seidou Mbombo Njoya and now, Samuel Eto’o. Over the years, the unfinished structure became a symbol of the instability that plagued Cameroonian football itself — leadership crises, court battles, normalization committees, FIFA scrutiny and endless administrative conflicts.

When the foundation stone was laid back in 2010, Eto’o was still conquering Europe. The former Indomitable Lions captain was busy making history under José Mourinho after completing his high-profile move from FC Barcelona to Inter Milan, where he would go on to win a historic treble.

Few would have imagined then that he would one day return as FECAFOOT president to oversee the completion of the same project.

Yet perhaps the most emotional chapter belongs to Iya Mohamed, the man under whose leadership the construction first began. The former FECAFOOT president never got to witness the completion of the headquarters. Arrested in 2013, he was later sentenced to 15 years in prison for the embezzlement of public funds linked to his time as Director General of SODECOTON, after authorities accused him of misappropriating billions of FCFA between 2005 and 2010. He is expected to regain his freedom in two years.

For years, the abandoned structure stood frozen in time in the heart of Yaoundé — weather-beaten, neglected and increasingly forgotten. During the same period, Cameroon football experienced dramatic highs and painful lows. The Indomitable Lions won the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, qualified for World Cups, changed coaches repeatedly and witnessed recurring tensions between the government and football authorities.

Through it all, the FECAFOOT headquarters remained unfinished.

Today, however, the story has finally taken a different direction. Under Samuel Eto’o’s administration, the long-delayed project has crossed the finish line. The modern complex now houses upgraded administrative offices, meeting rooms and working facilities aimed at improving football governance and professional administration in Cameroon.

Beyond its glass walls and modern appearance, the new headquarters carries deep symbolism. What once looked like a cursed and abandoned construction site has become the new face of Cameroonian football administration.

For Samuel Eto’o, the inauguration also provides a tangible achievement amid a presidency often marked by controversy, public scrutiny and power struggles within the country’s football ecosystem.

Sixteen years later, the doors are finally opening. In a country where many sports infrastructure projects never escape the promise stage, FECAFOOT’s headquarters now stands completed — carrying the fingerprints of four presidents, years of disputes and an entire era of Cameroonian football history.