President William Ruto has invited Premier League champions Arsenal to visit Kenya after thousands of supporters celebrated the club’s first league title in more than two decades by taking to the streets of Nairobi.
Speaking during an interview with Reuters, Ruto said he was surprised by the scale of celebrations witnessed in the capital and believes a visit by the team would be a great moment for its Kenyan supporters.
The President, who is a passionate Arsenal supporter, said he had already extended an invitation to the North London club after the team ended its 22-year wait for the Premier League crown at the end of May.
“Arsenal finally closed the gap, and it was a huge celebration. I was shocked in Nairobi. It was a big celebration, and I am trying to see whether sometime next year Arsenal can come to Kenya,” Ruto said. “I have sent an invitation because I think it would be a great moment for Arsenal to come to Kenya. They have great fans.”
Thousands of Arsenal fans dressed in the club’s red and white colours flooded the streets in Nairobi on May 24, after the team secured the Premier League title ahead of close rivals Manchester City. Supporters waved flags, sang club songs and turned parts of the city into a sea of red and white as they marked the historic achievement.
The celebrations saw supporters from across the country converge in Nairobi’s CBD, bringing traffic to a standstill as they marched through the city to mark the club’s success.
The scenes attracted attention beyond Kenya, with images and videos of the celebrations being shared widely by international media outlets and football fans on social media.
Ruto noted that Arsenal’s immense popularity in Kenya makes the country an ideal destination for the club should the visit materialise.
After Arsenal’s Premier League triumph, the President joined thousands of supporters in celebrating the victory, with several leaders and public figures also sharing congratulatory messages.
In a message shared online, Ruto praised the club for what he described as resilience, discipline and consistency throughout the season.
“Our dreams may be deferred, but never extinguished. The journey may be long, but the destination doesn’t shift. Meaningful struggle will always be hard and important work, difficult,” he wrote.
“But we are determined, dedicated and disciplined; therefore, our focus and consistency will take us to the finish line. To win, we must do our work and live our lives with the mentality of champions. Congratulations to the Arsenal, and thank you for exemplifying resilience and consistency. Let’s do it again soon.”
Arsenal’s popularity in Africa has grown beyond football, with supporters in countries such as Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria and Ghana embracing the club as part of their social and cultural identity.
From wearing Arsenal jerseys in daily life to displaying club merchandise and gathering to watch matches, millions of fans across the continent have turned match days into shared experiences.
The club, founded in 1886, spent much of its early history as a predominantly white English side. However, its global image changed after the arrival of Arsène Wenger as manager in 1996, when the club adopted a wider recruitment approach that included talent from Africa and the Caribbean.
Liberian striker Christopher Wreh was among the early signings during that period, alongside influential players such as Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry, whose success helped change perceptions of African and black footballers in European football.
As Wenger built a diverse squad, Arsenal began featuring more players of African descent or African nationality, a move that strengthened the club’s connection with supporters across the continent.
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