Mayor Zohran Mamdani hosted a public watch party for the Africa Cup of Nations, bringing together football fans and members of the African community to celebrate the continent’s biggest sporting event.
Speaking at the gathering, Mamdani said he stands with Africa and voiced support for African nations, culture and communities, highlighting the unifying power of sport. The event featured live match screenings, music and community engagement, drawing a diverse crowd of supporters.
The Africa Cup of Nations remains one of the world’s most watched football tournaments, showcasing talent from across the continent while uniting fans globally.
00:00So I will tell you, I will tell you, as a man who was proud to be born in Kampala, Uganda, I am rooting for Africa today.
00:11Any Moroccans in the house?
00:17We got any fans of Mayor Zoran Mamdani in the house?
00:22Okay.
00:23Alright.
00:24We can unite on that.
00:25Hold on, hold on. Any Kooligans fans? That's us.
00:28Alright.
00:30I think that was louder than Zoran.
00:33Well, ladies and gentlemen, the one and the only, Mayor Zoran Mamdani!
00:40Holy smokes.
00:41Okay, there it is. You're all set.
00:42Welcome.
00:44Oh my goodness.
00:45Can I see what badge you have under that shirt?
00:48Arsenal in the house.
00:50We got any gooners out here?
00:52Yeah, we got to go.
00:53How's it going, everybody?
00:54Who here is Zima Maghreb today?
01:00Who here is Zima Maghreb today?
01:02And who here is rooting for Senegal today?
01:05So I will tell you, I will tell you, as a man who was proud to be born in Kampala, Uganda, I am rooting for Africa today.
01:15As a classic politician.
01:17But some of my favorite memories as a soccer fan come back to 2002, the Senegalese team.
01:26It was the only day that my dad let me go late to school was to watch Papa Bubadjop score against France in that opening game.
01:36And then just two years ago, so many of us here in New York City were enjoying watching Morocco get to the furthest stage of any African team in history.
01:47And so whether you are here today cheering for Sadio Mane or whether you are cheering for Yasin Bono and Brahim Diaz, I know that what bonds so many of us here today is a love of a continent where many of us were born or many of us come from.
02:08And a love of the game that gives so much of us life on a day-to-day basis.
02:13And so while I know we wish that we could be in the Rabat 3,600 miles from here, I am excited that we can take this moment to celebrate what it can look like to bring the world's game to New York City in just five months from now.
02:28So today is a chance for us to enjoy this game, to enjoy the city that we call home, and also enjoy the places that we come from.
02:39And I want to take a moment to thank, we have a number of elected officials who are here with us today.
02:44You may know them, you may see them.
02:46We have the borough president of Manhattan, Brad Hoylman Siegel, who's over here.
02:50We have our city council people, we have Tiffany Caban, we have Shahana Haneev, Christopher Marte, Sandy Nurse, Pierina Sanchez.
03:02We also have a number of international dignitaries with us today.
03:06And I want to say a big, big round of applause and a welcome for the consul generals of South Africa,
03:11for the ambassador from Guinea, the consul general of Nigeria, the consul general of Morocco himself,
03:18of Mexico, of the UAE, of Liberia.
03:23We have so many who are here today.
03:25And so with all of that being said, I hope it's an incredible game.
03:29I'm going to be watching from right around here.
03:31And if we can just hear the loudest round of applause for the continent that many of us know as our home,
03:37this is for the AFCON game, this is for Morocco, for Senegal, and for every team that we love.
03:42Thank you all so much.
03:48One more time, for your mayor, Mayor Zoramamdani!
03:54We got one special surprise to somebody.
03:56We got an autographed ball by the mayor.
03:59He's going to hand it out to someone.
04:01Or are you just going to kick it?
04:02You're going to kick it?
04:07He's going to give it to somebody.
04:12Oh, we got a Moroccan!
04:13It was for the child.
04:15It was for the child.
04:16It was for the child.
04:18Let the kid have it.
04:20All right.
04:20Great job.
04:22Another hand for Mayor Zoramamdani, everybody.
04:27By the way, this is one of the things that the mayor wants to do,
04:30is more free events for the community.
04:32Do you guys want more events like this during the World Cup?
04:34We're looking forward to it as well, but this is incredible.
04:38We have a mayor that loves football, soccer,
04:41and this sport brings the community together,
04:44which is exactly what he's doing.
04:45So we're honored to be here.
04:47We're going to be here the entire match.
04:48This match is going to kick off in just a moment.
04:51Again, my name is Christian.
04:53I'm Alexis Guerrero.
04:54We are the Kooligans.
04:55We're going to be your emcees for the whole match.
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