Gabon Government Fires Coach and Suspends National Team After AFCON 2025 Losses

National Football Team Crisis in Gabon

The Gabonese government has decided to suspend the national football team, dismissing its coach and excluding star player Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from the squad after the team suffered three defeats at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals. Acting Sports Minister Simplice-Desire Mamboula announced on Wednesday during a television broadcast that the team finished last in its group and was eliminated from the competition in Morocco.

"In light of the shameful performances of the Panthers at the Africa Cup of Nations, the government has decided to dissolve the technical staff, suspend the national team until further notice, and exclude players Bruno Ecuele Manga and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang," Mamboula stated following a 3-2 defeat against Côte d'Ivoire in Marrakech.

Gabon, coached by former defender Thierry Mouyouma, had already been eliminated after losing its first two matches in Group F against Cameroon and Mozambique; however, in the final game, they were leading 2-0 against the defending champions before conceding three goals.

Neither Aubameyang nor veteran defender Ecuele Manga played on Wednesday, with Aubameyang returning to his French club, Olympique de Marseille, for treatment on a thigh injury. The former African Footballer of the Year responded on social media, stating, "I believe that the team's issues are much deeper than the individual who I am." At 36 years old, Aubameyang likely played his last match for Gabon in the defeat against Mozambique, as is also estimated for the 37-year-old Ecuele Manga.

The disbandment of the national team is a common response in Africa to disappointing results; however, given FIFA's strict stance against government intervention in football associations' operations, such measures have become rarer.