The joyful event brought together children from 11 football academies across the country for a special holiday clinic. It included 100 girls aged 13 and under from five academies and 120 boys in the 11-, 13-, and 15-year-old age groups from six academies, accompanied by their coaches.
Each child received a football through FIFA's Football for Schools programme, which was launched in Kigali in 2023 to support youth development via sport.
President Kagame highlighted football's power to foster unity and peace, praising Infantino's efforts.
'He uses football to bring people together for peace. Amahoro, like we are here, this stadium is called Amahoro Stadium, so this is the right place to use football to actually deliver peace. You know, we don't have enough peace in our region, but he has been using football to contribute to bringing peace to our region and beyond in other places,' he said.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino commended the world-class infrastructure of Amahoro Stadium, suggesting it as an ideal venue for the FIFA Series matches scheduled in Kigali in March 2026.
'I am so happy to be here with you today in Kigali in this beautiful stadium. Congratulations President. Congratulations to Rwanda. This is a state of the art stadium. We will actually play the FIFA Series in March here in this very stadium…And it will be absolutely beautiful,' he remarked.
Addressing the children, Infantino added, 'Let me say, dear children, how happy and proud I am to be here today because we celebrate Christmas. Merry Christmas to everyone. And of course, we celebrate you, the children of this beautiful country.'
Minister of Sports Nelly Mukazayire thanked FIFA for its continued support, pointing to the ongoing construction of four modern pitches in Gicumbi, Rusizi, Rutsiro, and at FERWAFA headquarters under the FIFA Forward programme.
She noted that these facilities will aid training, unite communities through sport, and nurture young talent.
Infantino announced further expansion, revealing plans to build 20 additional mini-pitches in schools nationwide.
Séraphine Umunyana, a coach at the Paris Saint-Germain Academy, emphasised that the gifted footballs will significantly boost the children's skills, as consistent practice with a proper ball is key to developing talent.
As part of the wider FIFA Football Festival initiative, around 5,000 footballs are expected to be distributed across Rwanda.
IGIHE
