Gor Mahia receive Ksh3m reward from CS Owalo
By Joel Sang, June 26, 2023After winning the Football Kenya Federation Premier League table, Cabinet Secretary for Information and Technology Eliud Owalo has rewarded Gor Mahia with Ksh3 million.
The minister has been a standout supporter of Gor Mahia throughout the season, and after meeting them on Monday, June 26, 2023, he gave them financial support after the season’s achievements.
Special lunch
“I have this afternoon hosted the victorious Gor Mahia FC for lunch, a day after they lifted the coveted FKF Premier League trophy.
I congratulated the team for winning the league and gave them a cash reward of Ksh3 million,” Owalo posted on his social media pages.
Gor Mahia managed to weather the storm from Tusker to win their record-extending 20th Premier League table on Sunday, June 25, 2023, at Moi International Sports Complex.
Even before the match, Owalo mobilised the fans to attend the match at Kasarani and support the team as they fought to reclaim a title they had missed in the last two seasons.
“I urged them to mobilise the fans, to throng Kasarani Stadium by 10:00 this morning, at the very latest; to sing and dance all the way, ahead of the kick-off against Nairobi City Stars at 3:00 pm. They have to cheer Gor to victory,” Owalo said before the crucial game that Gor Mahia went on to win 4-1.
The millions received from the minister will go a long way for the club that received no penny as prize money after lifting the Premier League.
The top flight had no sponsor, and thus the clubs were not expecting any money from winning the title.
Earlier, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga had given the local heavyweights Ksh1.5 million. Odinga is also known as a staunch supporter of the local heavyweights.
This proved to be a very tight season for the clubs that were chasing the title. Gor Mahia and Tusker were in a neck-to-neck duel, and the winner had to be decided on the final match day with Nzoia Sugar and Kenya Police showing strong intent to challenge too.
Although Tusker outsmarted Vihiga Bullets in Mumias, the win was not enough for them to win the title, which would have been their third straight trophy. They needed to win and Gor Mahia to lose in order to be champions again.
CAF football
Meanwhile, apart from establishing themselves as the champions of the country again, Gor Mahia will have a chance to rub shoulders with the best on the continent next season.
They are Kenya’s automatic CAF Champions League representatives, and should they not advance in Africa’s premier club competition, they will be relegated to the Confederation Cup.
Kenyan clubs will be returning to CAF football after being sidelined last season because FIFA suspended the country. Gor Mahia fans will hope that the club will meet all the requirements to play in the competition.
The 2023/24 CAF Champions League will be the 60th edition of Africa’s premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and the 28th edition under the current CAF Champions League title.
The winners of the 2023/24 CAF Champions League will automatically qualify for the 2024/25 CAF Champions League and earn the right to play against the winners of the 2023/24 CAF Confederation Cup in the 2024 CAF Super Cup.
While there is no official news yet, some media reports pointed out that the format of the competition will change starting in the 2023–24 season due to CAF’s newest competition, the Africa Super League.
The Super League is an inaugural competition spearheaded by CAF and supported by FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino, and the tournament is expected to begin in 2023.