Equatorial Guinea Duo Issued Four-Match Suspension for Official Abuse at Africa Cup of Nations.

The National Thunder captain Carlos Akapo and teammate Josete Miranda have both been suspended for four games for verbally attacking the referee after their 1-0 defeat by their opponents at the 2025 Afcon.

The ruling was made by a governing body committee after it reviewed the official's match report from the Group E encounter on the weekend, a loss that sealed the team's elimination from the tournament.

The referee stated that the two footballers "repeatedly directed insulting and offensive remarks" towards him and his assistants following the final whistle.

"Such comments were made in a atmosphere of extreme anger related to the loss, but nevertheless represent a grave violation of the principles of respect and fair play as well as the disciplinary regulations," added the referee.

A portion of the individual bans for Akapo and Miranda have been suspended for a term of one calendar year.

Tournament Consequences

Both players will now miss their nation's final tournament fixture against their next opponents on Wednesday.

In a related development, the country's football federation has been fined a sum of ten thousand dollars after its technical staff and players engaged in "excessive and abusive protests" against decisions by the officials.

The official documentation indicated there was "a progressive decline in behaviour on the sidelines" following an unfortunate deflection by Equatorial Guinea defender Saul Coco in the 74th minute.

Further Disciplinary Measures

Elsewhere, the tournament organizers have additionally penalized Stallions skipper Bertrand Traore the amount of ten thousand dollars for "offensive remarks" made in a post-match interview following his team's 1-0 loss to Angola.