The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) has explained why Kenya chose Malawi over regional nations to host the Harambee Stars’ upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Burundi and Ivory Coast.
The FKF defended its decision to select Malawi instead of neighboring countries for the Harambee Stars’ two 2026 World Cup qualifiers in June.
Some football stakeholders, including ex-players Dennis Oliech and John ‘Bobby’ Ogolla, as well as fans, questioned why Kenya chose a distant location for their home matches against Burundi and Ivory Coast. They suggested that hosting the matches in a neighboring country would have made it easier for Kenyan fans to attend and support the team. However, the federation cited several reasons for their choice.
“Tanzania was scheduled to play at home during the same week we were looking for venues, and Uganda also had two home matches, so they couldn’t provide us with a venue. We cannot play outside the FIFA week,” said FKF Communications Director Kenn Okaka.
“Going to Rwanda would not have been a good idea because Burundi is a neighboring country, and it would be like giving them a home advantage. Uganda did not have an approved stadium at the time, and we tried Egypt but did not get a response. Then we went to Malawi, who agreed.”
Uganda is set to play two home matches against Botswana and Algeria on June 7 and 11, hosting both at the newly-refurbished Mandela National Stadium (Namboole). Namboole was just approved last week to host international matches after being closed for nearly four years, forcing Uganda to seek alternative venues.
Tanzania, meanwhile, might have offered Kenya the opportunity to host their matches at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, given that Taifa Stars do not have a competitive home match during the upcoming international window. Taifa Stars were set to face Eritrea, but Eritrea pulled out of the World Cup qualifiers last November. As a result, only five teams in Group E—Morocco, Zambia, Congo, Niger, and Tanzania—are contesting the World Cup ticket. Tanzania will play away to Zambia on June 11 after friendly matches against Sudan and Indonesia.
Kenya is still hoping to convince CAF to allow it to host its matches at Nyayo Stadium. Sports Principal Secretary Peter Tum, appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Sports on Thursday, announced that his Ministry had invited CAF’s inspectorate team to re-inspect Nyayo National Stadium.
“The fact that CAF’s team has agreed to come again for an inspection after a request by the CS gives the country and football fans hope of watching Harambee Stars start their World Cup qualifier campaign on home soil,” said Tum.
While this appears challenging given the tight timelines and logistics, FKF remains hopeful. “We are hoping that this will happen, but CAF asked us for an alternative stadium, and we provided one. If anything changes, we will communicate with CAF, and they will inspect the venue. If everything is okay, they will inform both teams,” added Okaka.
East African countries have struggled with stadium issues in recent years, with Tanzania being the only nation boasting a CAF and FIFA-approved stadium until the recent clearance of Namboole and the newly-renovated Amahoro Stadium in Rwanda.
