ACFTA Fest 2026: Super Eagles Legends to Play African Legends in Abuja

Adedayo Akinwale  in Abuja

As part of activities lined up for the African Continent Free Trade Area Festival (ACFTA Fest) 2026, the Super Eagles Legends are billed to take on the African legends at the MKO Abiola stadium in Abuja.

The match which is expected to hold between 26th and 28th February would see Austin Jay Jay Okocha, Kanu Nwankwo Kanu, Joseph Yobo, Daniel Amokachi, Mutiu Adepoju, among other Super Eagles legends taking part in the match tagged, “Tinubu’s Cup”.

The strategic goals of the ACFTA Fest 2026 is to empower 1.5 million African youth in entrepreneurship, arts and sports and also facilitate $5 billion in trade deals and partnerships, as well as strengthening ACFTA awareness at grassroots level.

Speaking at the press conference held on Thursday in Abuja, Kanu assured that the Super Eagles legends are going to be there.

He stated: “It is happening in Nigeria, and the legends are going to be there. We are going to do what we normally know how to do, and we will perform.

“I think the most important thing is to understand why we are even involved and is to promote the culture of Africa and at the same time empower the grassroots.

“When you talk about legends, you have legends all over the world, but these are African legends, and being in Nigeria, all the legends are going to come out,

“Why we are doing this to make sure that the young ones who are growing up can understand and make them tick about their continents, Africa.”

Also, former Cameroonian international, Eyong Enong said Nigeria rather than any other African country deserves to drive the change in Africa.

According to him, Nigeria, better than any other country deserves to drive Africa’s transition, not just to its future, because someone once said, the future you talked about already today,

He described ACFTA as the perfect platform for everyone, irrespective of where they are, the level of politics, business key into it because it is going to make the difference.

“We’re not just going to bring these legends just to encourage them and celebrate them, but we’re going to tap into their experience. We’re going to tap into their history and how we can translate that to the next generation by getting them to be mentors, getting them to be coaches, getting them to be advisers, and sit down and talk about sports diplomacy,” Enong noted.

Also, the Vice President, Legal, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Aisha Abdulahi also described the launch of ACFTA Fest 2026 as  a visionary Pan African platform designed to promote trade, innovation, culture and collaboration across the continent.

She noted that the initiative resonates strongly with the ACCI mandate as the leading voice of the private sector in the Federal Capital Territory and Nigeria, to promote enterprise development, facilitate trade and investment and create opportunities for businesses, especially MSMEs, to scale locally and across borders.

Abdulahi stated: “This festival reflects the spirit of the African continental free trade area by bringing together entrepreneurs, creatives and institutions on one platform to drive intra African trade and collaboration.

“Platforms like this are important because they move conversations from policy to action. We applaud your commitment to positioning Nigeria as a hub for Pan African trade, engagement and creative exchange.”