It was all glitz and glamour as Africa’s football legend, Samuel Eto’o Fils officially launched the Castle Africa 5s in Lagos on Friday.
The high-octane event which was hosted by Trophy Lager in partnership with Castle Lager had various guests in attendance from the length and breadth of Africa.
The Castle Africa 5s,in men and women divisions, is the biggest amateur football competition in the continent, involving grassroots teams from various African countries where the global brewer, ABInBev operates.
Eto’o,a Castle Africa 5s ambassador, in company with his wife, Georgette, was joined at the launch by Super Eagles Assistant coach and Trophy 5-A-Side ambassador, Joseph Yobo and Alhassan, a Senegalese ex footballer.
Highlights of the event include the breathtaking and energetic performance by the Nigerian Football Supporters Club led by its President General, Dr. Rafiu Ladipo and a show-stopping display by a group of acrobats and cheorographers who displayed the flags of the 16 participating countries in this year’s tournament.
At the event, football also met with entertainment as prominent names in the entertainment circles including Falz and Femi Adebayo,who are also Trophy Lager brand ambassadors were on hand to lend support for the launch.
In her remark, Marketing Director, International Breweries Plc.,Tolulope Adedeji said it was a great pleasure for the company and the Trophy brand to host the launch of the Castle Africa 5s in Nigeria considering how much Nigerians love football.
She noted that the Castle Africa 5s has grown big as a developmental football initiative in the continent the same way that the Trophy 5-A-side has been impacting in Nigeria.
She lauded the grassroots soccer tournaments canvassed by the parent company, ABInBev which is being executed by Castle Lager in Africa and Trophy Lager in Nigeria.
The event reached its climax as the defending champions of the Castle Africa 5s, the Trophy 5-A-Side team, Scope FC, were recognised and celebrated amidst rousing welcome from the audience.
The members of the team who were visibly elated for being part of the launch thanked the organisers of the Trophy 5-A-Side and Africa 5s for giving them the platform to showcase their talents and abilities.
The team encouraged the managements of ABInBev and International Breweries Plc to continue to sustain the tempo and even raise the bar of the tournament to enhance grassroots football development in Nigeria and all across Africa.
The 2020 edition of Castle Africa 5s which holds in South Africa between 16th to 20th of July will involve teams from Nigeria, Ghana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique, Mauritius, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Botswana, Uganda, Namibia, Tanzania, Cameroon, Senegal and Ivory Coast.
Each of these countries are expected to hold a national playoff to determine the representative to the continental showpiece.
After the five days of intense football fireworks among the 16 teams, a winner is decided and then awarded the trophy as the champion of the tournament for this year.
Aside that, the two finalists of the tournament will also enjoy an all-expense paid trip to watch the Serie A classic derby between AC Milan and Inter Milan later in the year.
Source: Thisdaylive