Harambee Stars and Wolfsberger forward Ryan Ogam has revealed that his goal is to inspire the next generation of players in the country.

Ogam recently sealed a mega move from FKF Premier League side Tusker FC to the Austrian top-tier league.

Ogam has maintained his scoring boots since coming into the national team limelight during the 2024 TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN 2024), scoring decisive goals for coach Benni McCarthy’s charges in front of the home crowd at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, during the tournament in August 2025.

He came off the bench to score the winning goal for Harambee Stars in the second-to-last outing for the Kenyan team in Group F of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers against Burundi on Thursday, October 9, 2025, at the Intwari Stadium in Bujumbura, a result that lifted the team to third place in the group standings.

Speaking ahead of their crunch tie against African champions Ivory Coast on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, at the Alassane Quattara Olympic Stadium in Abidjan, Ogam said he is pleased to don the national team shirt, and he will strive to inspire the coming crop of players.

National pride

“Donning the national team shirt is a big pleasure because it carries a lot of weight. It represents millions of Kenyans. For me, it is a pleasure, and every time I dream of giving my best while at it, I inspire the upcoming players because I am also lucky to play in the same team with people who inspired me when I was young.”

“I need to keep scoring for both club and country,’’ Ryan Ogam said. Alongside his mentor, Michael Olunga, Ogam has been a bright star in the national team’s quest for the World Qualifiers ties against Gambia, Seychelles and Burundi.

Meanwhile, with the dream of playing at the 2026 World Cup up in smoke, Football Kenya Federation Vice President McDonald Mariga has said Harambee Stars are aiming to improve their FIFA rankings when they take on the Ivory Coast at the Alassane Quattara Olympic Stadium on Tuesday night, starting at 10:00 EAT.

Mariga has also hailed the government of Kenya for improving sports infrastructure, saying it has become easy to identify talent, thus promoting exposure of players to the established leagues in the world, like the English Premier League.

“With that, it is easy to identify talents; we want to be qualifying for these tournaments. As you know, we have the World Cup Qualifiers halfway for us, and we are aiming for better rankings. That will make it easier for our players to make it from Kenya to places like the United Kingdom. When players are comfortable, what they think of is just playing and winning,” the FKF vice president said.