'Embarrassing' brawl over controversial penalty in SportPesa Premier League playoff

Fans confront and attack centre referee John Sulwe after he awarded Mombasa United a controversial penalty vs Kariobangi Sharks, forcing the second leg of the SportPesa Premier League promotion/relegation playoffs to be halted at Ulinzi Complex, Nairobi, October 6, 2026. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

Outrage erupted in Kenya on Wednesday after a referee was attacked and chased out of a Nairobi stadium by fans for awarding a penalty during a key match.

Kariobangi Sharks and Mombasa United were vying over who would get to play in the top division next season.

The Nairobi-based Sharks were leading 2-1 when referee John Sulwe awarded the other side a penalty.

The team's players surrounded Sulwe and began to shove him, before the crowd invaded the pitch -- a plastic seat at one point flying through the air and narrowly missing his head.

He was forced off the field, escorted by stewards, and the match was abandoned in the 68th minute.

Kenyan newspaper The Standard featured a photo of Sulwe being punched in the face by a man in a yellow cap and called the whole episode "embarrassing" and "a disgrace",

Neither the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) nor the two teams have commented on the incident.

Adding to the indignity, the match was already an attempt to resolve a dispute between the two clubs.

The Kariobangi Sharks were relegated from the Premier League after the last season and were due to be replaced by Mombasa United.

The Sharks challenged their relegation in court, saying it was based on new league rules that had yet to take effect.

Seeking to avoid an extended standoff, the FKF, long plagued by corruption scandals, had organised play-off matches between the two teams to settle the matter.