Football Season Opens on January 26

This was announced during a working session regrouping football stakeholders in Douala.

A total of 28 clubs presidents, being 14 from MTN Elite One and 14 from MTN Elite Two; the President of the Professional Football League, Pierre Semengue, alongside the President of the Cameroon Football Association (FECAFOOT), Iya Mohamed met in Douala on Wednesday January 16.

The major outcome of the meeting was a unanimous decision on the official date for the start of the 2013 football season, slated for January 26. Thus, the deliberations centred on setting grounds for a hitch-free competition, though club financing is usually a bone of contention. It was equally a moment for the restitution of resolutions of the January 10, 2013 inter-ministerial meeting in Yaounde, regarding the financing of football clubs by the state, as well as practical modalities for the professionalisation of Cameroonian football.

Addressing the session, the President of the Professional Football League, Pierre Semengue started by clarifying controversial views about the football sector. He precised that FECAFOOT has disbursed FCFA 75.000 million to the League, and not FCFA 100 million as announced by the media. He announced that the contract between MTN and the Professional Football League will be signed on Monday January 21. As concerns the clauses, he added that additional details will be disclosed during the official signing ceremony.

As concerns the use of desired finance, Pierre Semengue explained that part of the funds will be further disbursed to the various team partaking in the competition, the purchase and maintenance of equipments, rehabilitation works on the Bamenda, Bagante and Ngoumou stadia, match bonuses to the first three best teams. At the end of the closed working session, a number of resolutions were met, which if implemented, will go a long way to boost Cameroonian football.