Chan: Mixed reactions as Harambee Stars land in a Group of Death

Kenyas McDonald Mariga, Uganda Hassan Wasswa, and Mrisho Ngasa of Tanzania during the Draw for the of the TotalEnergies CAF African Nations Championship CHAN 2024 Final Draw at KICC in Nairobi Kenya on Wednesday January 15, 2025. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

The die has been cast and the delayed 2024 African Nations Championship (Chan) will be held in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in August 2025 after the draw was conducted at KICC, Nairobi on Wednesday night.

However, it was not the night many Kenyans were expecting after national team Harambee Stars was drawn in what has been considered as a Group of Death in the tournament that was initially supposed to kick off on February 1. The tournament was abruptly postponed by Confederation of African Football (Caf) a few days ago due to unpreparedness of the hosting nations. Ironically, in a draw involving 19 nations, it was former Harambee Stars midfielder McDonald Mariga, who is the current Football Kenya Federation deputy president that pooled Kenya in Group A together with two-time title winners Morocco, DR Congo, Zambia and Angola.