Ghetto Kids Getting Golden Buzzer in their performance at Britain's Got Talent In 2023. /File Photo Colombian pop superstar Shakira has invited Uganda's Ghetto Kids to perform alongside her at the halftime show of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, in what would mark a historic moment for African entertainment on the global stage. In a video message to fans participating in the viral "Dai Dai" dance challenge, Shakira praised the creativity pouring in from across the world and said she wants the final performance to become "special" and "unforgettable." "I've been seeing amazing creations to Dai
Ghetto Kids Getting Golden Buzzer in their performance at Britain's Got Talent In 2023. /File Photo
Colombian pop superstar Shakira has invited Uganda's Ghetto Kids to perform alongside her at the halftime show of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, in what would mark a historic moment for African entertainment on the global stage.
In a video message to fans participating in the viral "Dai Dai" dance challenge, Shakira praised the creativity pouring in from across the world and said she wants the final performance to become "special" and "unforgettable."
"I've been seeing amazing creations to Dai Dai, the official World Cup song, and I'm gonna need dancers for the halftime show at the finals," Shakira said. "That's why I've decided to invite as many of you as I can to dance with me at the finals. So I've already invited the Ghetto Kids from Uganda."
Founded in 2014 by Dauda Kavuma, the Ghetto Kids are a dance and music group made up of children from the Katwe slums in Kampala. The dancers, ranging from children to teenagers, are part of an organisation that helps disadvantaged, street, and orphaned children from Kampala, and their videos have garnered millions of views across YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.
"Dai Dai" is the official song of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, featuring Shakira alongside Nigerian Afrobeats star Burna Boy. The halftime show will be co-headlined by Shakira, Madonna, and K-pop supergroup BTS, in a production curated by Chris Martin and produced in partnership with Global Citizen, the first ever Super Bowl-style halftime show at a World Cup final.
The Shakira invitation crowns a remarkable run of global milestones for the group. In 2022, the Ghetto Kids travelled to Qatar on an all-expenses-paid trip after their viral dance video to the tournament's official song caught the attention of World Cup organisers.
During the tournament, they dined with football royalty, watched matches in the VVIP section, and delivered a halftime performance at a Paris Saint-Germain match in France.
The following year, the group earned the Golden Buzzer on Britain's Got Talent Series 16 from judge Bruno Tonioli, who pressed the buzzer midway through their performance, the first time in the show's history that had been done, before reaching the final.
In March 2024, the Ghetto Kids became the only African act to perform at the 75th anniversary of the Royal Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey in London, performing before Queen Camilla, Prince William, and a congregation of 2,000 dignitaries from across the Commonwealth
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will run from 11 June to 19 July across 16 host cities in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
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