Patrick Mboma, a Cameroonian football icon, converted to Islam and changed his name to Abdoul Djalil Mboma on Friday in a local mosque in Douala.
According to Actu Cameroun, a video circulating on social media sites showed the Cameroonian star, once known as “Magic,” taking the shahada inside the Bonamosadi mosque in Douala.
Mboma has yet to respond to the viral video on his social media platforms, though he did upload a fresh photo on his Instagram account roughly an hour after it became viral.
A few weeks earlier, he posted a greeting to the Muslim community on social media on the occasion of the month of Ramadan.
Born in 1970, Mboma is the former all-time top goal-scorer for the Cameroonian national team.
During his career, he played for Châteauroux, Paris Saint-Germain, Metz, Gamba Osaka, Cagliari, Parma, Sunderland (where he scored once against Tottenham Hotspur), Al-Ittihad, Tokyo Verdy and Vissel Kobe before retiring on 16 May 2005.
He played in the 1998 and 2002 World Cups, and also led Cameroon to the gold medal at the 2000 Olympics and victories at the 2000 and 2002 African Nations Cups. He was named African Footballer of the Year for his efforts in 2000.
Several football players have taken shahada recently. Last March, Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey announced his conversion to Islam.
A few days earlier, Dutch football star Clarence Seedorf embraced Islam, announcing the decision on Instagram.
