Former Cameroon star Samuel Eto'o was elected to the CAF executive committee by acclamation in Cairo on Wednesday as he was the lone candidate from the central Africa region.
The 44-year-old became eligible only last week after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned a CAF ban on the ex-Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea forward.
His elevation to the executive of the African governing body came at a CAF extraordinary general assembly – an annual meeting of the top football officials in the continent.
Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) president Eto'o now joins the supreme decision-making body in Africa.
The CAF ban, which if maintained would have excluded Eto'o from being a candidate, came last year after the three-time Champions League winner was found guilty by the Cairo-based organisation of an ethics breach,
Last July, CAF said the Cameroonian had "seriously violated the principles of ethics, integrity and sportsmanship" by becoming a brand ambassador for a betting organisation.
Apart from the suspension, the four-time African Footballer of the Year was fined $200 000 (€185 000). This was later quashed.
Born in the Cameroon port city Douala, Eto'o has been involved in several controversies since becoming Fecafoot boss in 2021.
He was caught on video assaulting a football supporter outside a stadium after a match at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
He later apologised, saying: "I would like to apologise for losing my temper and reacting in a way that does not match my personality. It was an unfortunate incident."
Last year, he was banned by Fifa from attending all Cameroon men's and women's national team matches for six months after an incident at the Women's under-20 World Cup in Colombia.
The world body found Eto'o guilty of "offensive behaviour, violation of the principles of fair play and misconduct of players and officials".
When Belgian Marc Brys was appointed national coach of the Cameroon men's team last year, he clashed regularly with Eto'o.
Eto'o enjoyed a glittering career, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest African footballers.
He helped Cameroon win the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games football tournament and was part of the 2000 and 2002 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon)-winning teams.
Eto'o featured at four World Cup and six Afcon tournaments and scored a record 18 goals in the African tournament.
Later on Wednesday, CAF president Patrice Motsepe from South Africa is set to be re-elected unopposed for a second four-year term.