The Kenya journey to World Cup 2022

Football in Kenya has been a sport of interest for many decades with locals supporting their teams in various tournaments that have been held over years. The sport has registered steady growth with more teams signing up which has increased the level of competition and in turn improved the quality of the game.

Recently SportPesa signed a four and a half year deal with the Kenyan Premier League which is now referred to as the SportPesa Premier League that will see the Football Industry improve professional standards and performance of the clubs, coaches, players as well as referees while improving the competitiveness and attractiveness of the League to the general public.

The football fraternity has a vision for Kenya to participate in the World Cup 2022 taking place in Qatar. SportPesa is supportive of this vision and is the reason that together with Football authorities they have set out to improve the game in order to achieve this.

In terms of Football development towards this goal, the youth coaches early in the year benefited from Coaches Training that was organized by SportPesa in conjunction with the English Premier League top club Arsenal.

In addition to the Arsenal partnership, recently SportPesa signed international deals with Hull City and Southampton which comes as an advantage to the local football fraternity as players, coaches and referees will be able to interact with teams of calibre from English Premier League.

The football fraternity should look into sending a team to the next Olympics in preparation for the World Cup 2022 which will require a lot of hard work dedication and support from both the private and public sector. In order to achieve this, Football development is key from the under 20’s for major leagues.

The industry also requires proper facilities, proper administration which SportPesa has committed to improve. This will contribute to not only the profile of the sport but Sport Tourism as well. Proper facilities and hosting of exciting games against some of the International teams that SportPesa has signed is likely to draw interest from the fans across the region including Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda.

The involvement of SportPesa in the league is impeccable, driving football development right from the grassroots level all the way to the top of the league and National team. Furthermore the focus is not only on Nairobi but across the country as well. SportPesa is looking into improving the welfare of the players so as to ensure they exert themselves fully for development of the sport.

Kenya has a lot of potential for CECAFA, and authorities have confidence in the new office as they have passion for football. With the right structures in place and with support from sponsorships like SportPesa, Kenya is ready to take on the region.

In conclusion we are grateful to SportPesa. The sponsorship will go a long way in achieving the League’s mission which is to build professionalism on and off the field in the SportPesa Premier League and its participating clubs, coaches, players and referees and ensure they always act together for the good of our sport and nation.