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FIFA President Gianni Infantino and CAF President Patrice Motsepe attended the official opening ceremony of Stade de Senegal, a state of the art stadium located in Diamniadio, 30km from Dakar, presided over by President of Senegal, Macky Sall.
The inauguration of the 50,000 capacity venue was made all the more special by a dazzling line up of Senegalese football legends, who took on some of Africa’s most cherished football legends, in the first ever match to be played at the stadium.
Before the competition got underway, Head of State Macky Sall addressed spectators, expressing his joy at being able to officially open the stadium shortly after the victory of the Lions of Teranga, the Senegalese national football team, in the CAF African Cup of Nations. He also revealed that the venue would bear the name of his predecessor Abdoulaye Wade, in honour of his important place in Senegalese society.
In his address CAF’s President Dr. Patrice Motsepe spoke about the importance of the stadium for Senegal and Africa. This was followed by an address from the FIFA President who said: “This star shines bright for Senegal all over the world,” whilst pointing to the famous green star on the Senegal national football jersey. “What an honour to be here today, and what emotion!”
The game action got underway with Senegal’s own Khalilou Fadiga scoring the first-ever goal at the new stadium, much to the delight of local fans who were ecstatic with joy. The African Legends team didn’t hang around and Nigeria’s Augustin Jay Jay Azuka Okotcha scored the equaliser goal that saw the exhibition game end on a final score of 1-1.
