Ghana, Nigeria, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago to compete in soccer tournament in London
Ghana, Nigeria, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago will compete in a men's football tournament in London later this year.
The Ghana Football Association (GFA) confirmed on Wednesday that the four nations will play in the Unity Cup in late May, following the conclusion of the domestic European season.
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The two Caribbean sides will compete in the first semi-final on Tuesday, May 27 with the two west African teams playing each other a day later. The respective losers will then play a bronze medal match on Saturday, May 31 with the winners facing each other in the final later that day.
All four nations have large diasporas within the UK. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) stated in the 2021 census that 271,000 people in the UK identified as Nigerian, with 113,000 identifying as Ghanaian. In 2007, the Jamaica High Commission stated that there were 800,000 people in the UK who were born in Jamaica or of Jamaican descent. The ONS' 2013 census said there were 25,000 Trinidadians living in the UK.
'The Unity Cup is a tournament that really does evoke the often-used phrase 'an event that goes beyond sport',' said Andy Howes, co-director of competition organiser AfroSport.
'But with the array of elite stars and the profile of the teams involved, this event is not only important in terms of its cultural significance but also reflects the growing commercial importance of African and Caribbean football, as well as the growing demographic of black football fans within English football.'
The tournament begins just a few days after the weekend on which the Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A seasons conclude, while the Bundesliga campaign ends 10 days before the first semi-final.
The Unity Cup previously took place in 2004, with Nigeria, Jamaica and Republic of Ireland taking part in a round-robin tournament. Nigeria were the champions after winning both of their games.
All of the matches in the 2004 tournament took place at Charlton Athletic's The Valley. The GFA release did not specify where games will be played this year, only that they will be in London.
Nigeria are the highest-ranked team of the quartet, placing 44 in the latest FIFA world rankings. Jamaica are next at 62, with Ghana at 77 and Trinidad & Tobago at 102. The games come just over a week before Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago compete in Concacaf World Cup qualifiers in early June.
(Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images)
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