For over a decade, Nigerian music has found a home on football’s biggest platforms, making its presence impossible to ignore, www.isagoal.com reports.
From 2013 to 2025, a total of eight Nigerian Afrobeats stars have performed live at major international football tournaments, marking a steady run of appearances.
According to Pulse Nigeria, names like D’Banj, Yemi Alade, Kizz Daniel, Patoranking, Davido, Burna Boy, Tems, and Rema have taken Nigerian sound to the world through these events.
These performances weren’t small-time gigs—they took place at the world’s most prestigious football finals including the World Cup, African Cup of Nations, UEFA Champions League, Ballon d’Or, and FIFA Club World Cup.
Of all these artists, four stood out with groundbreaking performances that broke regional and continental records.
Davido, Rema, Burna Boy, and Tems became the first Nigerians—sometimes even the first Africans—to perform at these monumental football events.
Rema made headlines in 2023 when he performed “Calm Down” at the Ballon d’Or in Paris, becoming the first African artist to grace the stage.
Burna Boy delivered a crowd-pumping show at the UEFA Champions League final in Istanbul that same year, electrifying over 77,000 fans at Atatürk Olympic Stadium.
Davido took center stage at the 2022 FIFA World Cup final in Qatar, performing the official anthem “Hayya Hayya” to an 80,000-strong crowd in Lusail Stadium.
In July 2025, Tems captivated over 82,000 people during the halftime show of the FIFA Club World Cup final at MetLife Stadium, a first for any African artist.
Their appearances mark a significant moment for Afrobeats, placing Nigerian artists among music’s global elite in both sports and entertainment.
This article was updated 2 months ago
