Kolo Toure announces wedding date

Manchester City’s defender Kolo Toure will be getting married to long-time fiancée and mother of his two children Chimène Akassou during the weekend of June 16 and 17 in Ivory Coast, the player said in a statement sent to the local press on Monday.



The couple have been living together in England since 2003, a year after Ivory Coast international moved from his youth club Asec Mimosas to Arsenal.



After a white wedding at the Mairie de Cocody in Abidjan, the ceremonies will continue in church and mosque, the statement said. Toure, 31, is a practicing Muslim while his fiancée is a Christian.



He is one of the most influential players of the Ivorian star-studded outfit, and has participated in three editions of the Africa Cup of Nations and two Fifa World Cup tournaments with the Elephants.



In March 2011 Toure failed a drug test and was handed a six-month suspension.



He is elder brother to teammate and reigning African Footballer of the Year Yaya Toure, and former OGC Nice striker Ibrahim Toure.



The Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba officially wedded the mother of his three children Lalla in Monaco last year.