Former Super Eagles striker Obafemi Martins has announced plans to organise a youth football tournament in support of President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election campaign.

He disclosed the initiative during a television interview on Thursday.

Martins said the competition, which he called the Renewed Hope Youth Tournament, is scheduled to take place in November. It will feature teams drawn from Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, with two or three additional sides also expected to take part.

The former Inter Milan and Newcastle United forward explained that the tournament is intended both as a show of support for the president and as a way of creating opportunities for young Nigerians. He said he was happy to contribute given the work being done by the administration.

Martins confirmed that he is funding the event himself. He linked the initiative to efforts aimed at helping Nigerian youth through sports and related activities.

“Renewed Hope” was the campaign slogan used by Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima in the 2023 presidential election. The phrase has since been adopted for several government programmes and by groups mobilising support for the president’s re-election bid.

Photo credit: Punch Newspaper