Before you read this, look at the above photo and watch Omam Biyick’s legendary header below. I watched it live after school in June 1990 in Marlo in Bangor, Northern Ireland. I wanted Cameroon to win. I loved it. I love it. I still love it.
“Omam-Biyick oh and he scored” – 1990 World Cup commentator!
Life took a completely inspirational and ridiculous turn and twist for me when I finally finally got a Cameroon Visa and landed in Douala. Twenty four years later…wow! I was going to have my 44th Birthday in Cameroon, an incredible dream became a reality, and was even better than I could ever have fathomed!
My Backstory: 2024 to 1990 – Cameroon 
At Italia 90
Ever since Omam-Biyick’s header in 1990 for Cameroon against Argentina, I have followed Cameroon’s football results. I have a soft spot for them, despite my clear bias of Northern Ireland. Back in 1990, as I watched live on TV in my living room in Marlo, Bangor, Northern Ireland, Cameroon played Argentina in the opening match. It was to be unforgettable! One brother, Omam-Biyick scored the winner against Maradona’s Argentina, the other brother, Kana-Biyick hacked down Caniggia and got a red card. Cameroon finished the match with 9 men, with Beni Massing also getting a red for an absolutely nuts challenge also on Caniggia. Cameroon won the match 1-0, later winning the group after beating Romania 2-1 and progressing to the quarter finals after beating Colombia 2-1 in the last 16. Roger Milla and Omam-Biyick were my heroes!
In the quarter finals, Cameroon were 2-1 up against England with multiple chances to make it 3-1, before England fluked their way through with two Gary Lineker McCrums. I still think Cameroon were the best team in that World Cup and it’s the best ever African performance at any World Cup, yes even better than Morocco’s slide into the 2022 semi finals and Ghana’s near McCrum miss v. Uruguay in 2010.
So ever since 1990, I have wanted to go to Cameroon and in February 2024, I finally booked a flight on Air Maroc from Casablanca, Morocco into Yaounde, Cameroon. Actually it worked out cheaper to book an extra flight all the way to Douala! I landed in Douala…and got a taxi to my lovely resort here – the Foyer Du Marin Hotel! My first beer in Cameroon was even a Harp! Not the exact same as the Northern Irish beer but uncannily similar logo and label colour!
Backpacking in Douala, Cameroon
Thanks to my guide, Mebah Markdonald, I was able to backpack the key sights of Douala, as well as do a pub crawl and chill out by the swimming pool in my amazing resort at the Foyer Du Marin. At midnight, as my birthday hit, the owner Klaus served me up a special rare shot and I had a mini-party in the hotel with a few other backpackers!
That was all cool of course, but my main reason for backpacking Cameroon was actually to watch some football…you know what’s coming.
The Venue – Stade Mbappé Léppé
My guide was Mebah Markdonald (full details of Mebah and his company at the bottom of this post) and I was joined by his friend for the day – Clement. The match we decide to watch is played at the famous Stade Mbappé Léppé. For those who don’t know – Samuel Mbappe Leppe was the 1960s Roger Milla, and Roger Milla was the 1980s Samuel Eto’o. The Cameroon flag flies proudly at the Stade Mbappé Léppé. I’m a bit surprised that this stadium is right opposite the main Cathedral, which was in my top backpacking sights of Douala.
Samuel Mbappé Léppé played for Oryx Douala in the 1950s and 1960s, winning five Cameroon championship titles (1961, 1963, 1964, 1965 and 1967), thrice the Cameroon Cup (1963, 1968 and 1970) and he was the first captain to lift the African Cup of Champions Clubs, doing so in the 1964–65 season! Roger Milla describes him as being the greatest ever African footballer, though me – I vote for Roger! Over the course of his career, Samuel earned several transfer deals European clubs offered him a chance to play professional football in Europe but he refused to join them. He stayed loyal to Cameroon. I got a photo by his statue outside the ground.
Stade Samuel Mbappé Léppé is formally known as Stade Akwa and is a multi-use stadium in Douala, Cameroon. It is currently used mostly for football matches obviously. It serves as a home ground of Kadji Sports Academy. The stadium holds just over 4,000 people. Once admiring it from the outside, it was time to get a ticket and go in. Samuel Mbappé Léppé wasn’t to be the only Samuel on this inspirational day.
Getting My Match Ticket
We walk up to the gate and it’s pay cash onthe gate for the match ticket. It’s just Clement and I going. We are attending the top flight play-off match between Stade Renard (from this city – Douala) playing against Canon Yaounde (from Yaounde – the capital city). My ticket number is 6939. There’s a lively crowd developing here in the Cameroonian heat. The ticket was 1,000 CAF – Central African Francs which works out around £1.30 in Northern Irish pounds or $2.00 US Dollars.
They rip the ticket in half as you go in which is a shame but I still get to keep the half ticket part.
The Bar at Stade Mbappé Léppé
Once inside, I was pretty surprised, beer and other alcohol is available all the time. No strictness like in England or Northern Ireland. You can buy a beer and just drink it watching the match, so we do!
For the first half, Clement and I have a beer each – they don’t have the Cameroonian Harp here so instead we both have a can of the 33 Export – which is not an export – it’s a pure Cameroonian beer, and it’s good! For the second half, I spy this “Whisky Cola” at 7% alcohol in a can and it’s only about a dollar more than the beer so I get two and this is a great second half tipple!
The Match – Stade Renard v Canon Yaounde
Of course the main point is the match itself, but that almost took second stage for me today as I’m so in awe of the stadium, the atmosphere, the locals, the bar and the fact that I’m the only foreigner, the only Caucasian, the only white person here!
The people in Cameroon are just so open, friendly and welcoming, especially if you love football! They’re all talking away to me! We sit next to a cool guy whose name is Honest – what a great name!
I chat to so many people and am posing for photos on my phone, on their phone whilst also watching the match! After 31 minutes, the home team take the lead to go 1-0 up in the play-off. Stade Renard are ahead.
Meeting Samuel Eto’o By Fluke!!!
Half-way through the first half, we gaze to the right where a group of fans are walking in front of us. It’s Samuel Eto’o!! I cannot believe it!! Clement confirms this and thinks it is nuts – the fact that I came to this very match and by chance there is Samuel Eto’o!! This is nuts. He’s right there with his mates. Below in the white t-shirt, black baseball cap and blue jeans. Like the most regular guy ever!
Who is Samuel Eto’o?
To put things in context – Samuel Eto’o (born 10 March 1981, so less than a year after me) is a Cameroonian football administrator and former player who is the current president of the Cameroonian Football Federation (as of 2025). He won the African Player of the Year a record four times: in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010. A precocious talent, Eto’o moved to Real Madrid as a 16 year old.
Eto’o was put out on loan by Real Madrid and ended up signing full-time for Real Mallorca in 2000 where he scored 70 goals, a club record. His impressive form saw him join Barcelona in 2004 where he scored 130 goals in five seasons and also became the record holder for the most appearances by an African player in La Liga. Just watch this for proof…
Winning La Liga three times, Samuel Eto’o was a key member of the Barcelona attack where he played alongside Ronaldinho. He was in the same team as Andres Iniesta for years. Barcelona won the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final, with Eto’o scoring in the final, and he was part of an incredible front three of Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry that again won the 2009 Champions League Final, with Eto’o again scoring in the final! He managed to score in two Champions League finals and won the tournament thrice, doing so in 2010 again this time with Inter Milan.
While at Barcelona, Eto’o also came in third for the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2005 and was twice named in the FIFA FIFPro World XI, in 2005 and 2006. He also played in 3 World Cups, won 2 African Nations Cups and played in a further 6 tournaments, finishing as top scorer in 2006 and 2008.
In 1998, he was the youngest participant in the 1998 FIFA World Cup when he appeared in a 3–0 group stage loss to Italy on 17 June 1998, at the age of 17 years and three months, not too far away from beating Norman Whiteside’s record – Norman from Belfast in Northern Ireland, is also one of my heroes. Samuel Eto’o won a GOLD for Cameroon at the 2000 Olympics and played in 4 World Cups. These records make him probably the most decorated African footballer EVER.
Samuel Eto’o’s Wild Career
Real Mallorca
- Copa del Rey: 2002–03
FC Barcelona
- La Liga: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09
- Copa del Rey: 2008–09
- Supercopa de España: 2005, 2006
- UEFA Champions League: 2005–06, 2008–09
Inter Milan
- Serie A: 2009–10
- Coppa Italia: 2009–10, 2010–11
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2010
- UEFA Champions League: 2009–10
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2010
Cameroon
- Olympic Gold Medal: 2000
- African Cup of Nations: 2000, 2002
- World Cup Group Stage: 1998, 2002, 2010, 2014
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2000 Cameroon U23 6 (1) 1997–2014 Cameroon 118 (56)
Individual
- Young African Player of the Year: 2000
- African Player of the Year: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2010
- ESM Team of the Year: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11
- FIFA World Player of the Year Bronze Award: 2005
- FIFA FIFPro World XI: 2005, 2006
- UEFA Team of the Year: 2005, 2006
- CAF Team of the Year: 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
- Pichichi Trophy: 2005–06
- UEFA Champions League top assist provider: 2005–06
- African Cup of Nations top goalscorer: 2006, 2008
- UEFA Club Forward of the Year: 2006
- FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball: 2010
- Coppa Italia top goalscorer: 2010–11
- Russian Premier League MVP Award: 2012–13
- Golden Foot: 2015
- Globe Soccer Player Career Award: 2016
- IFFHS All-time Africa Men’s Dream Team: 2021
- Inter Milan Hall of Fame: 2021
Records
- African Cup of Nations all-time top goalscorer
- RCD Mallorca all-time top goalscorer
- Cameroon all-time top goalscorer
So that is Samuel Eto’o…
And there he is, just sitting calmly behind me at one point – watching the match! And this was a wild fluke, a crazy coincidence. Of all the times I could have visited Cameroon, of all the matches I could have attended and yet I chose this time and this one. Neither Mebah Markdonald nor any of his tour company nor anyone in my hotel nor Clement my tour guide for the day had ever even seen Samuel Eto’o never mind shake his hand, talk to him, get a photo with him and get his autograph! It was my destiny to meet Samuel Eto’o. Samuel Eto’o is without doubt the coolest, calmest celebrity I have ever met!! Here he is just behind me!!
I went up to Samuel Eto’o, totally confidently, not shy at all and showed him my Northern Ireland shirt and badge. I just said “Samuel I’m a big fan. Great to see you here at a match!”. He says “Hi! You good?” back and then I hand him my match ticket and a pen and ask for his autograph on the back. “No problem. Enjoy the game”. He signs it and hands the ticket back, proper gentleman here. “Thanks Samuel”, I mutter, not even shocked I used his first name – I mean I’d seen him on TV enough times! It was a mind-blowing incredible moment. This was Samuel Eto’o! He’s globally more famous than Roger Milla and Francois Omam-Biyick of course, but those were my original Cameroonian heroes yet here I was with the man who eclipsed both their careers!
After that, the euphoria of how calm and cool Samuel Eto’o was, everything else seemed irrelevant. We had another Whisky Cola and watched the rest of the second half. The away side slid in an equaliser to make it 1-1 and that was that.
Final Score – Stade Renard 1-1 Canon Yaounde
Canon grab a second half equaliser on 62 minutes and we continue drinking in the sun. Music plays, fans sing, Eto’o enjoys the match and I’m in awe and in love with Cameroon just like I was in 1990. They can come true. Yeah they can come true. Dreams can come true. We are completely and utterly blessed in life. Something must be written in the stars.
I also noted that the teams played each other again in December 2024 and it was also a 1-1 draw. Plus, they will also play each other again on my 45th Birthday, 30th March 2025!
Organising Watching Football In Cameroon
To get your Cameroon visa, you need to have a host or a letter of invitation. I contacted local businessman and tour manager Mebah Markdonald. Mebah is excellent. He is everything he says he is. A top man. He sent me privately all the details I would need for using him and his company as my host and letter of invitation. These are Mebah’s details if you want to contact him.
Discover Cameroon Tours:
