Cameroon 2002 African Nations Cup Heroes, Who Were They And Where Are They Now?

Cameroon's 2002  African Nations Cup winning squad is widely considered the greatest Indomitable Lions squad ever. But do you know who the 2002 AFCON heroes are and where they are now?

Led by a budding Samuel Eto'o and shooting star Patrick Mboma, this team won the AFCON 2002 trophy without conceding a single goal in open play.

So who are the 2002 AFCON heroes, and where are they now?

Cameroon 2002 African Nations Cup Heroes, Who Were They And Where Are They Now?

Indomitable Lions Celebrate after Penalty shootout victory over Senegal in CAN 2002, Bamako, Mali.

In truth, the building blocks of this team were put in place just after the 1998 world cup in France, when the majority of the old guard hung their boots. 

Their first steps were printed on stone with Cameroon's win at the all-Africa games in 1999. 

Cameroon shocked the world the following year by winning the Olympic Games and their first AFCON title in 13 years. 

Who Were Cameroon's AFCON 2002 Heroes?

The 2002 squad was led by German tactician Winfried Schaffer (2001 to 2004). 

Below is the whole squad and the Clubs they played for at the time.

Goalkeepers:

Alioum Boukar (Samsonspor) 

Songo'o Jacques  (Metz, France)

Kameni Idriss Carlos (Le Havre,France) 

Defenders: 

Tchato Mbiaye Bill (Montpellier,France )

Wome Nlend Pierre (Bologne,Italy)

Song Rigobert (FC Cologne, Germany) 

Kalla Nkongo Raymond (Estramadura, Spain)

Etame Mayer Lauren (Arsenal, England)

Dika Dika Jean (Uniao de Lamas, Portugal)

Mettomo Lucien (Manchester City, England)

Olembe Salomon (Olympique Marseille,France)

Midfielders:

N'do Joseph Cyrille (Al Kahalees, Saudi Arabia)

Njitap Fotso Geremi (Real Madrid ,Spain)

Foe Marc Vivien (Lyon FC, France) 

Djemba Djemba Eric (Nantes,France) 

Ngom Kome Daniel (Numancia,Spain) 

Alnoudji Nicolas (Rizespor, Turkey)

Attackers: 

Eto'o Fils Samuel ( Mallorca,Spain )

Suffo Patrick (Sheffield Wednesday, England) 

Mboma Patrick (Parma, Italy)

Ndiefi Sielenu Pius (Sedan, France) 

Eppale Joel (Panahaki, Greece)

This crop of players won the African Nation's Cup for Cameroon, the country's second in as many editions.

In the final, they beat a star-studded Senegal side to win their fourth continental crown.

So where are the 2002 Indomitable Lions Heroes Now?

21 years after the triumph in Mali, many of these Lions are still around football circles. 

Samuel Eto'o Fils

The number 9 went on to achieve big things in professional football representing many European clubs. 

His most notable achievement is winning the European treble with two different Clubs in consecutive years (2009 with FC Barcelona and 2010 with Inter Milan).

Eto'o Fils is currently the President of the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT), a position he's occupied since December 2021.

Geremi Njitap

Njitap is a successful businessman. He runs his Real estate business in Cameroon. 

He is also the President of the Syndicate of Professional Footballers in Cameroon (SYNAFOC), a body that looks after players' welfare in the Cameroon football leagues. 

Geremi Njitap has been the President of FIFPRO Africa since September 2021.

Suggested: The Court of Arbitration For Sports (CAS) Sanctions FECAFOOT

Rigobert Song Bahanack

Rigobert Song was Captain of the 2002 AFCON winning squad; he holds the record as the player with the most caps for the Cameroon National team (137). 

Song has appeared in a record four world cups. 

The Emblematic former captain of the Indomitable Lions is Currently the Manager of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. 

Raymond Kala Nkongo

Raymond Kala was Rigobert Song's partner in crime for many years; both men marshaled the Lion's defense for years. 

Raymond Kala is currently the Team manager of the Cameroon National Team.

Patrick Mboma

The man with a magical left foot. 

The highest goal scorer at CAN 2004 and former African best player, Patrick Mboma developed a formidable partnership with a young Samuel Eto'o during the 2002 Africa Nation's Cup. 

After he retired from the National team, Mboma obtained his coaching badges and had a stint with the Paris FC U19 squad in 2015. 

Mboma is a consultant for the global sports channel Canal+ Sport and also signed an engagement with FECAFOOT as an ambassador of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.

Ndiefi Sielenu Pius

Ndiefi Pius was a regular in the Cameroon squad and was used mainly as an impact sub during his playing days with the indomitable Lions of Cameroon. 

The former FC Sedan forward has been assistant manager at French amateur clubs Saint-Quentin and AS Fresnoy. 

Ndiefi is currently the assistant manager of the Cameroon A' team, with former Indomitable Lion Saidou Alioum as head coach. 

Lauren Etame Mayer

Lauren Etame was one of the most influential players for the Indomitable Lions during the 2002 Nations Cup. 

He is currently at FIFA and works as a technical Expert for the development of football talents in Africa.

Final Words

So here we are, Cameroon's 2002 Africa Nations Cup heroes and what some of them are up to these days. 

Some have not left the football stage, while others have engaged in different careers. 

Others, however, are quietly spending their retirements away from the spotlight. 

Worth Noting is that one of Cameroon's midfield generals, former Lyon and Manchester City midfielder Marc Vivien Foe passed on a few months after the 2002 trophy celebrations in Mali. 

In fact, Foe died while actively defending his country's colors during the 2003 Confederations Cup in a semi-final game against Colombia. 

Among the 2002 contingent, only Idriss Carlos Kameni is yet to officially hang off his boots, as the former Espanyol man is still very much involved in Professional football.