The long-serving former president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Issa Hayatou, has passed on less than 12 hours to his 78th birthday.
The Cameroonian football administrator, who spent 29 years at the head of the continental governing body, assuming the presidency in 1988 and leaving office in 2017, was pronounced dead on Thursday by medical experts.
While in active service, the deceased held high positions within world governing body of the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA).
Hayatou was a member of the Switzerland-based organisation’s executive committee, now known as the Fifa council, from 1990 to 2017.
He had a brief spell as acting president of Fifa between 2015 and 2016 after Sepp Blatter was suspended.
Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, paid tribute to Hayatou, who in his youth was a track athlete and basketball player, in a post on Instagram.
“Saddened to hear of the passing of former Caf president, former Fifa president ad-interim, Fifa vice president and Fifa council member, Issa Hayatou,” Infantino wrote.
“A passionate sports fan, he dedicated his life to sports administration.
“On behalf of Fifa, condolences go to his family, friends, former colleagues and all who knew him. Rest in peace.”
In August 2021 Hayatou was handed a one-year ban by Fifa for breaching its code of ethics when signing African football’s largest ever deal with French media company Lagardere in 2016.
The sanction was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in February the following year.
