Far from the pitches of Juba and Bamako, flags waved, drums beat, and chants rolled as South Sudan’s student football team defeated Mali 2–0 to lift the Africa Without Borders Football Championship trophy in Istanbul, Türkiye.
The final match of the competition, which took place on Sunday night, Sep 14, at the Mecidiyeköy Stadium, featured African undergraduate students and graduates in Türkiye.
The goals came from Victor Yohana, an architecture student at Beykent University, who slotted home the opener before teammate Hillary Jadisco, an economics student at Topkapı University, sealed the win and sent the South Sudanese bench sprinting onto the pitch in celebration.
A tournament more than goals
Organisers say the annual competition aims to strengthen the bond among Africans and African students in Türkiye.
The Istanbul competition is organised under the umbrella of Africa Without Borders, an association of African students and graduates in Türkiye.
“We created this tournament as part of the union of African youth,” explained Souandaou Athoumani Ali, the founder and president of the group, who is a PhD graduate in cancer biology.
“Our aim is to bring together students, graduates, and the diaspora in general, to unite them, entertain them, and enable them to feel at home away from home. Through the sporting spirit and interactions, we instill responsibility and unity and display the right image of Africa,” she tells TRT Afrika at the end of the game.
Her remarks on continental unity were reflected in the crowd that gathered: Somalis, Nigerians, Cameroonians, Congolese, Sudanese, and Ethiopians, each waving their nation’s flags.
Some of the students shared that the bond from the games helps dispel the sometimes lonely feelings that come with studying and living abroad.
“When you are far from your family, you feel lonely,” said Shehu Rabiu, a Nigerian master’s student of Islamic economics at Marmara University. “But when you have fellow Africans as a family away from your own family, you feel at home. We are proud, and we feel as one.”
“It makes us feel Afcon vibes,” said Ibrahim Bakari Traore, a second-year mechatronics student at Yıldız Teknik University. “Like we are the real players in the Africa Cup of Nations.”
Türkiye-Africa relations
Shehu Rabiu further pointed to something deeper than football: a growing relationship between Türkiye and Africa, strengthened by education, culture, and sport.
“Türkiye is really investing in Africa. Bringing students here to study is part of that investment. I have no doubt that as African youth, we are going to make Türkiye proud and make our continent proud with such opportunities,” he says.
South Sudan’s captain, Joel, a civil engineering student, also praised Türkiye for bringing cultures together.
“When I came here and learnt a new language [Turkish], it gave me a nice feeling, like I was gaining new skills and new experiences. Football, for me, is the same; it teaches us patience, progress, and process.”
The young players in Istanbul draw strength not just from each other but from continental icons such as Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen, now starring for Galatasaray, and Cameroon’s André Onana, who recently joined Trabzonspor. “They are our inspiration. They make us proud to be Africans here,” said one player.
As twilight fell over Istanbul, the trophy glinted under stadium lights. South Sudan’s students lifted it high, Mali applauded with grace, and the crowd cheered for all.
