It just offers happiness and joy. Being a footballer is the finest profession in the world for me. We are living in an unpredictable era marked by conflicts and global problems.
The planet is split. Through the power of football, the FIFA World Cup will bring people together to cross borders, unite, and celebrate together. Football Unites the World will be a global movement that uses football to inspire, unite, and develop people. Geremi Njitap, a FIFA Legend, understands the uniting force of football better than anyone, having inspired an entire nation to dream throughout his 14-year career with Cameroon.
Football Brings People Together
With the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022TM underway, he looks back on a career filled with titles and memorable memories. The former international has a long list of accolades, including two CAF Africa Cup of Nations crowns, Olympic gold, and two UEFA Champions League titles, but the World Cup has a particular place in his heart. Indeed, long before his Cameroonian exploits, he was a starry-eyed spectator as the Indomitable Lions pulled off exploit after exploit in Italy in 1990.
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I was 12 at the time,” the former Real Madrid and Chelsea right-back recalls. “It was the first time an African team had ever made it to the quarter-finals. It’s a wonderful memory for us. We were young, and after every game, people ran around the streets. It was an incredible experience Each game that summer provided another opportunity to admire the brilliance of a player on his way to becoming an African and international football icon.
At the time, everyone associated with Roger Milla and what he was doing,” Geremi, who has 118 Cameroonian caps, adds. When I first started my career and was going on club trials, I told my teammates, ‘I’m Roger Milla’s brother.’ That demonstrates the significance of the World Cup and a player who participates in it. Twelve years later, in Korea/Japan in 2002, the free-kick expert got to see it all firsthand before returning to the World Cup spotlight in South Africa in 2010. Cameroon was eliminated in the group stage on both occasions, but Geremi remembers them fondly.
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The World Cup is the world’s largest sporting event.” It was a dream come true for me. Your ambition as a player is to play in the biggest competition. For a Cameroonian, this begins with the Africa Cup of Nations. Then you want to win club championships. But reaching the World Cup is the ultimate goal. Football is a religion that brings people together, he continues. It only brings me joy and happiness.” Being a footballer is the best job in the world for me.