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

The National Thunder captain Carlos Akapo and fellow squad member Josete Miranda have both been banned for four matches for verbally attacking the match official after their narrow loss by their opponents at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.

The ruling was handed down by a disciplinary panel after it examined the official's match report from the tournament encounter on Sunday, a loss that confirmed the side's elimination from the tournament.

The referee reported that the two footballers "repeatedly directed abusive and obscene comments" towards him and his linesmen following the full-time whistle.

"These remarks were made in a atmosphere of intense anger related to the loss, but nonetheless constitute a serious violation of the standards of sportsmanship and conduct as well as the governing rules," added the referee.

A portion of the respective bans for Akapo and Miranda have been deferred for a term of one year.

Tournament Consequences

Both players will now miss their team's last tournament fixture against Algeria on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the country's football federation has been fined a sum of $10,000 after its coaching team and squad members engaged in "excessive and abusive complaints" against calls by the refereeing team.

The official documentation indicated there was "a steady deterioration in behaviour on the touchline" after an unfortunate deflection by Equatorial Guinea defender Saul Coco in the 74th minute.

Further Governing Body Action

Elsewhere, the continental body have additionally fined Burkina Faso captain Bertrand Traore the sum of ten thousand dollars for "inflammatory comments" made in a post-game interview following his side's 1-0 loss to Angola.