Nigeria Legends beat Team Africa 2-1 in exhibition match

Jay-Jay Okocha during the exhibition match at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos State.

Nigeria’s football legends beat Team Africa 2-1 in an exhibition match at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos State, to close CANEX WKND 2026.

The Legends Football Game was organised by TopTier Sports Management in collaboration with Bet9ja.

According to a statement on Monday by TopTier Sports Management, the game brought together stars from the generation that won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations and the 1996 Olympic gold medal in Atlanta, where Nigeria beat Brazil and Argentina.

The Nigeria team featured Jay-Jay Okocha, Samson Siasia, Daniel Amokachi, Finidi George, Mutiu Adepoju, Garba Lawal, Victor Ikpeba and Austin Eguavoen.

Team Africa was led by former Ghana defender Samuel Kuffour and included Cameroon’s Alex Song and Ivorian pair Salomon Kalou and Didier Zokora, Senegal’s El-Hadji Diouf and former Ghana captain Stephen Appiah.

They pushed the home side hard, but Nigeria had the final say.

The Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, scored the winner.

The Chief Executive Officer of TopTier Sports Management, Chichi Nwoko, said the idea started with a conversation with the Vice President of Afreximbank about staging a football event.

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“I am fulfilled and glad that we had an opportunity to bring Africa to Lagos,” Nwoko said.

“I am a lover of sports, the Vice President of Afreximbank is a fan of football, and the chairman of Bet9ja, Mr Kunle Soname, is the biggest supporter of football in Nigeria.”

She said the timing was right, as it came 30 years after the 1996 Olympic triumph.

“It was perfect timing, a perfect storm to really celebrate and remember the legacy of Nigeria as the kings of football 30 years after 1996,” Nwoko said.

She thanked the legends, the Federal Government, the National Sports Commission, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and Bet9ja for their support.

The organisers said the game was designed to honour the players who shaped Nigeria’s and Africa’s standing in world football, while drawing attention to the welfare of athletes and the opportunities available to them after their playing careers.