'Even if you pay me millions': McCarthy warns Harambee Stars against dreaming too big at AFCON 2027

Harambee Stars head coach Benni McCarthy in a past match [FKF Media]

Harambee Stars head coach Benni McCarthy has urged Kenyans to temper expectations ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, insisting that winning the continental title is currently beyond the country's realistic reach despite the national team's steady progress.

McCarthy, who has guided Kenya through the early stages of its AFCON qualifying campaign, believes the country must first build the foundations for sustained success rather than expect to challenge Africa's established football powers immediately.

The South African was particularly candid about the scale of the challenge facing Harambee Stars, saying even a massive financial investment would not instantly transform Kenya into an AFCON favourite.

“Even if you were to pay me millions and millions of dollars to win AFCON, I don't think Kenya has the resources and the team strong enough to compete with Morocco, Egypt, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal,” McCarthy said.

He described those nations as the continent's powerhouses and warned against making unrealistic promises simply because Kenya will have home advantage when it co-hosts the 2027 tournament with Uganda and Tanzania under the East Africa Pamoja banner.

“Kenya can win AFCON, but it's highly unlikely we would have a chance to win. I'm not disrespecting anybody. I'm just being honest and humble in that opinion,” McCarthy said.

?? #HarameeStars coach - Benny McCarthy doesn't believe Kenya can go all the way and WIN AFCON next year! ?⚽ What’s your take on the coach’s statement? ? ? #HarambeeStars #AFCON2027 #Pamoja2027 https://t.co/rL2OxdmcNk — Kasarani Stadium (@KasaraniStadium) October 8, 2026

A decade-long project

Rather than setting an immediate target of lifting the trophy, McCarthy believes Kenya's 2027 campaign should provide the platform for a much longer football development project.

The coach wants the three East African hosts to make meaningful progress at the tournament, starting with getting beyond the group stage and gradually building towards competing with Africa's elite.

“And that these countries get out of the group stages and get into the second round of the qualifications. And from there, as we saw in the FIFA World Cup, many African countries were able to get out of the group stages and hopefully progress slowly and maybe get to quarter-finals, semi-finals possibility but to win AFCON, maybe 10 years from now,” he said.

For McCarthy, therefore, AFCON 2027 should not be judged solely by whether Kenya lifts the trophy. A successful tournament would also mean delivering a well-organised continental showpiece while giving the national team a platform to develop against the best sides in Africa.

“For us, the main objective is to host the tournament and make sure that the AFCON is a big success for Kenya, for Tanzania, and for Uganda, who are hosting,” he said.

Despite his blunt assessment, the ex-Bafana man is not short of optimism about Kenya's long-term prospects. The coach believes a new generation of players, particularly those gaining experience in European leagues, is gradually improving the quality of the national team.

“Kenya doesn't have a long history in African football, where they've done well in previous AFCONs. But now we have a new generation of players, young players. Many of them play their football in Europe,” he explained.

That emerging generation, McCarthy believes, gives Kenya something on which to build.

His assessment comes as Harambee Stars prepare for a demanding Group D qualifier double-header against South Africa in November.

Encounters with Bafana Bafana will offer Harambee Stars another opportunity to measure progress against one of Africa's established football nations and give McCarthy a clearer indication of how much work remains.