National Thunder Duo Handed Four-Match Suspension for Official Abuse at Africa Cup of Nations.

Equatorial Guinea captain Carlos Akapo and teammate Josete Miranda have both been suspended for four matches for abusing the match official following their 1-0 defeat by Sudan at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.

The ruling was made by a disciplinary panel after it examined the referee's report from the tournament encounter on Sunday, a loss that confirmed the team's elimination from the tournament.

The referee stated that the two players "continually uttered abusive and obscene remarks" towards him and his assistants after the full-time whistle.

"These remarks were made in a atmosphere of intense anger stemming from the loss, but nonetheless constitute a serious violation of the standards of respect and conduct as well as the disciplinary regulations," noted the official.

Two matches of the individual bans for the two players have been deferred for a period of one calendar year.

Immediate Impact

Both players will now miss their nation's last group match against their next opponents on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the nation's governing body has been fined a sum of $10,000 after its technical staff and players engaged in "persistent and abusive protests" against decisions by the refereeing team.

The match report indicated there was "a progressive decline in behaviour on the touchline" following an unfortunate deflection by Equatorial Guinea defender Saul Coco in the second half.

Further Governing Body Action

In another incident, the continental body have also penalized Stallions skipper Bertrand Traore the amount of ten thousand dollars for "offensive remarks" made in a post-match media appearance after his team's 1-0 loss to Angola.