Kenya bid to host Afcon 2027 started long time ago: Taib
By Charles.Thuku, May 23, 2023Plans to have Kenya host the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) have been there before but came a cropper due to lack of government goodwill, a former Kenya Football Federation (KFF) official claims.
One-time KFF (now Football Kenya Federation) Treasurer Noordinne Taib reminisced when the journey began in 1988 when deep political differences affected football administration to the point of making the federation powerless in bargaining for rights to host the biggest football showcase in Africa.
Taib said the biggest bottleneck was Kenya lacking the facilities that meet international standards.
“There were a lot of political twists and turns then and things were not made even worse by lack of infrastructure. I remember, Mombasa Municipal Stadium was not ready and wanted a facility that could accommodate 10,000 fans complete with a press pavilion that could accommodate 3,000 journalists.
He said the then Confederation of African Football Farah Addo and former KFF Chairman Job Omino spearheaded a campaign for Kenya to be given the hosting rights once the country met the standard but there were still challenges since some powerful people in the government said they were unaware of the development.
“This was during the advent of the multi-party (politics) era when Kanu and Ford were pulling in different directions and KFF felt that even if the facilities were in order, it was not conducive to hold an event of such magnitude. I was even part of the federation’s representatives who met CAF officials to discuss the bids,” revealed Taib.
‘It is unfortunate that we also missed the 1996 edition of Afcon which was subsequently handed to South Africa,” said Taib.
Further, Taib said that it was presumed by some individuals that had Kenya been given the rights to host the AFCON, some KFF officials would have stolen the thunder from the government which in turn saw the bid scattered almost to a point of no return. He said there were even plans for Kenya to co-host AFCON with Mali and Ghana in 2000 but the deal fell through due to the same reason-failure for the country to have stadiums that met international standards.
On the joint bid for Kenya to co-host the 2027 AFCON, Taib lauded Presided William Ruto for his promise of government’s support, saying the decision is God-sent to Kenyan players who wish to market themselves outside the country’s borders.
“What President Ruto did is a milestone in Kenyan football. We have all along been vouching for the event to be held in Kenya to no avail.
Taib appealed to the President to ensure that the facilities in the country are rehabilitated to the satisfaction of both CASF and Fifa so as Kenya not to miss out again in hosting the event.