Ugandan coffee entrepreneur Dr. Tugume Nelson O has secured a spot at the FIFA World Cup in New York, pledging to bring affordable Ugandan coffee to fans and visitors during the tournament after attending a World Cup announcement event alongside the city’s mayor.
Dr. Tugume, founder of AfriCoffeePark, was present at a New York City World Cup announcement hosted by Mayor Zohran Mamdani last week. “His vision to make the world’s game accessible to entrepreneurs like me reflects the kind of inclusive leadership that makes New York City extraordinary,” he said of the mayor. The brand intends to serve high-quality Ugandan coffee to New Yorkers and international visitors throughout the tournament, positioning the World Cup as a launchpad for African agricultural products on the global stage.
“Uganda grows some of the world’s finest coffee, and this is an opportunity not only to celebrate football, but to showcase African excellence, create farmer-consumer connections, and introduce more people to Ugandan products,” Dr. Tugume said.
On the same occasion, Dr. Tugume extended an invitation to United States men’s national team footballer Tim Weah to attend the Africa Coffee Festival 2026. Weah is the son of former Liberian president George Weah, whom Dr. Tugume described as “the only African in history to win the Ballon d’Or, football’s highest individual honor.” The connection is seen as a boost for the festival’s ambition to spotlight African excellence beyond sport.
Dr. Tugume also used the platform to make a wider economic argument, saying the World Cup’s projected billions of dollars in economic activity “should inspire us as Africans to think differently about how we build platforms that create economic value at home.”
“This is bigger than coffee,” he said. “It is about creating opportunities for our communities, opening global markets for African products, and ensuring our farmers, the backbone of our economies, benefit from the value they create.”
AfriCoffeePark’s New York push is aimed at building direct connections between Ugandan farmers and international consumers, while also drumming up interest in the upcoming Africa Coffee Festival.
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