A night that was meant to be a musical celebration turned into a scene of chaos at Nyayo National Stadium on Saturday, December 20, 2025, when crowd control breakdowns at the gates sparked a deadly stampede during Nigerian Afrobeats star Asake’s “Mr Money African Tour” concert.
At least three fans were killed and several dozen injured, according to multiple eyewitness accounts and early police statements.
The worst of the casualties occurred outside the stadium as thousands of ticket-holding fans waited in long, poorly managed queues for entry.
The tragedy unfolded before the show even fully began. Thousands who arrived hours early were held up outside the gates in long lines under heavy rain and poor communication from event staff.
Eyewitnesses describe what went wrong: organisers had funnelled the crowd through a single, narrow point of entry, lacking proper crowd control infrastructure such as barriers or clearly directed lanes.
After progress slowed, security personnel abruptly halted entry for at least 30–45 minutes, according to accounts from staff who were there and social media observers.
Once the outer gate was breached, the danger shifted inside the complex as fans surged toward a secondary barrier near the tunnel into the stadium. Several people were crushed amid the surge as bodies pressed against closed gates.
The first confirmed fatality was a woman who collapsed during the crush and was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital.
Other victims were rushed to nearby health facilities with serious injuries ranging from fractures to asphyxiation. Authorities say they are still confirming the full casualty count.
Safety experts and public commentators have already raised broader concerns about crowd management at large events in Kenya, especially in venues with histories of crush incidents.
Nyayo Stadium was the scene of a deadly football match stampede in 2010 that killed several fans after poorly controlled access points were overwhelmed, a stark reminder of the human cost when mass crowds are not safely managed.
As investigations continue under Nairobi police leadership, families of victims and civil society groups are demanding accountability from both promoters and authorities.
Conversations online and in newsrooms alike focus on urgent reforms in event planning, communication protocols, and enforcement of safety standards for concerts that draw large crowds.
