Youth football teams drawn from leading academies from the West African sub region will join  the Pepsi Football Academy in a special edition of the Pepsi U-17 International Tournament to  celebrate 50 years of Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc in Nigeria.

The teams include Afad Football Academy of Cote D’Ivoire, Liberty Professionals, Ghana and  Liberty Academy, Togo.

The visiting teams will be joined by the Lagos State Youth team to trade tackles with the Pepsi  Football Academy lads in what promises to be a prodigious display of football skills.

The tournament which will hold at the MKO Abiola stadium and Abeokuta Grammar School both in  Abeokuta will take place between 3 September and 11 September.

Director of Pepsi Football Academy, Dr. Kasimawo Laloko, said the academies invited are ranked  among the best in the region with rich tradition of producing excellent young football talents.

He said the Pepsi Football Academy youngsters are well prepared for this tournament and will  match the visiting teams skills for skills.

Commenting on this special edition of the Pepsi U-17 international tournament, Mr. Iain Nelson,  Consultant to the Pepsi Football Academy, said: “Pepsi Football Academy has a reason to  celebrate with Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc on its 50th anniversary. The academy has enjoyed  excellent support and encouragement from the company in the past 18 years, which has seen it  discovered, nurtured and developed fully fledged world class football professionals plying  their trade for different clubs in Nigeria, in the national teams and Europe.”

Former students of Pepsi Academy include John Mikel Obi, Osaze Odemwingie, Onyekachi Apam,  Solomon Okoronkwo, Isaac Promise and Elderson Chiejile among others.

Football lovers who are expected to throng the two venues for the matches have been assured of  excellent hospitality and freebies from Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc in the spirit of its 50th  anniversary celebration.