Nickname: Indomitable Lions
Manager: Paul Le Guen
Previous World Cup appearances: Six
Best finish: Quarter-finals, 1990
Key players:
Samuel Eto'o (captain)
Geremi
Alexandre Song
Now managed by the astute Frenchman Paul Le Guen, who enjoyed such success with Rennes and Lyon, the Indomitable Lions comfortably topped Group A in African qualifying.
In a group with Gabon, Togo and Morocco they lost just once, amassing 13 points and scoring nine goals in six games: but that does not tell the whole story.
When Le Guen replaced Otto Pfister, Cameroon languished at the bottom of the pool with a solitary point from two matches.
Le Guen signed only a six-month contract, promptly dropped the legendary figure of Rigobert Song to the bench, installed Samuel Eto'o as captain and set about transforming the team's qualification campaign.
The world-class striker Eto'o, who now plays for Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan after his time at Barcelona, responded with goals. Still only 28, the pacy striker has lost none of his threat and will be determined to make a mark in South Africa.
Former Real Madrid man Geremi is a defensive rock but also likes to get forward and score goals, while defender Alexandre Song's development has been overseen another Frenchman, Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.
Lyon's Jean Makoun is a dynamic presence in midfield who has flourished in the UEFA Champions League and he's certain to be at the heart of Le Guen's plans. Makoun wears No 17 at Lyon, in tribute to the late Cameroon midfielder Marc Vivien-Foe, who tragically collapsed on the pitch with heart failure at the Confederations Cup in 2003.
Benoit Assou-Ekotto is another well-known name to Premier League fans and as four-time African Cup of Nations champions, the quality of this squad should not be underestimated.
And as for Song, he will be one of the longest-serving players at the entire tournament. The 33-year-old former Liverpool journeyman was part of the squad for Italia 90, and had racked up 133 caps and five goals for his country by the time they qualified.
Football fans of a certain age will never forget Cameroon's stunning arrival on the World Cup stage in 1990 when Francois Omam-Biyik's header upset the reigning champions Argentina in one of the greatest World Cup shocks of them all.
Roger Milla's goals and Benjamin Massing's full-frontal assault on Claudio Caniggia are burned in the memory of all who enjoyed that tournament.
And England fans who remember the 1990 quarter-final will know how fortunate Bobby Robson's team were to squeeze past Cameroon and into the semi-finals to face Germany.
The Cameroonians also made a splash in the fashion world - and upset FIFA in the process - when they arrived for the World Cup in 2002 with their memorably figure-hugging sleeveless kits. FIFA promptly outlawed the revolutionary look.
Eto'o celebrated his team's qualification for South Africa in 2010 by presenting the entire squad with a £29,000 watch. Which was very nice of him, but begs the question: what will the prize be if they go on to win the World Cup?
DID YOU KNOW? Cameroon became the first team in World Cup history to top a group with a negative goal difference at Italia '90: They beat Italy 1-0, Romania 2-1 but a 4-0 reverse at the hands of Russia did their goal difference no favours.
