Rigobert Song’s coaching era with Indomitable Lions ends – his legacy
By Biwah Bryan
Rigobert Song’s two-year tenure as coach of the Indomitable Lions has come to an end as a press release from the Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Professor Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, confirmed his contract will not be renewed
Song joined the team as coach in 2022 and helped Cameroon qualify for the 2022 World Cup, where they beat Brazil and earned four points, a rare achievement for Cameroon in a long while.
Additionally, Song steered the team’s qualification to the 2023 African nations cup in Ivory Coast where Cameroon was booted out at the knockout stage by Nigeria.
His accomplishments did not go unnoticed, as he was among the 20 coaches nominated for the 2022 IFFHS Coach of the Year award by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics.
During his tenure, Cameroon played 23 games, winning six, drawing eight, and losing nine and climbed to 33rd position on the FIFA rankings after beating Brazil in the world cup, but they have since dropped to 51st place.
Song took over from Antonio Conceicao, who led Cameroon to a bronze medal during the 2021 AFCON but was sacked by Fecafoot shortly after Samuel Eto’o became president in December 2021.
Before Song’s appointment, Cameroon had recorded 14 victories, six draws, and three defeats under the Portuguese coach Antonio Conceicao.
Before coaching the Indomitable Lions, Song was in charge of Cameroon’s U23 and intermediate lions, where he experienced one of the team’s worst performances during the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN) in Egypt.
