Kenya national teams could forfeit matches

Johanna Omolo of Kenya

Wednesday Oct 30, 2019. 13:00

Kenyan football’s cash crisis has started to hit the national teams after the senior women’s side was told to stop their camp ahead of a 2020 Olympic Games qualifier against Zambia next month.

And Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Nick Mwendwa has admitted that there may not be cash for the senior men to honour their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Egypt (away) and Togo (home) in the next international window either.

Mwendwa says there is simply no money left to fund the national teams and as such they will be forced to pull out of the matches and face the sanctions that follow.

While there is certainly reality in what he is saying, it is likely also a public call for the Kenya government to bail out the FKF.

Mwendwa says they have written to government, but the response so far has been that there are no finds available.

He has set a deadline of November 6 to receive the bailout or the side will not travel to Cairo to meet Egypt.

Mwendwa has laid the blame for the lack of funding directly at the door of Sports Permanent Secretary Kirimi Kaberia.

“I don’t know why he has a problem funding football activities,” Mwendwa told reporters.

“Our girls have not been given a penny for the last year. They have families to feed and bills to pay. The PS [Permanent Secretary] keeps promising but never honours his word.

“The President [Uhuru Kenyatta] told me to my face that we now have a Fund that will take care of all national teams. But the PS has refused to fund these teams. I don’t know what his problem is with football.”