Nyayo is where AFC Leopards truly belong
AFC Leopards fans cheer their team during their SportPesa Premier League match against Gor Mahia at Nyayo Stadium on August 27, 2017. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- When she toured the facility last week, Amina said the stalled works due to contractual and financial issues will resume this week
- This has resulted in reduced match attendance and the concomitant reduced gate collections for the hard up club
- Leopards cannot get many fans to attend matches in Machakos as they would have done if the fixtures were played in Nairobi
A confirmation by Sports Minister Amina Mohamed that Nyayo National Stadium will be ready for use in March is good news for AFC Leopards and other Nairobi-based top tier teams who have previously used the facility for their home matches.
When she toured the facility last week, Amina said the stalled works due to contractual and financial issues will resume this week.
The 30,000-seater stadium was closed for renovation in 2016, while the dilapidated Nairobi City Stadium was banned from hosting Premier league matches, leaving our city clubs without home grounds.
Today, most Ingwe fans are unsure of where their team will be playing next as securing venues has now become tricky.
This has resulted in reduced match attendance and the concomitant reduced gate collections for the hard up club.
We urge the Government to intervene for our team to host matches at our traditional home ground, as works are completed.
Ingwe have suffered enough constantly shifting matches outside the city, and hosting our remaining home matches at Nyayo will significantly improve our gate collections. According to the club chairman, Dan Shikanda, since the 13-time league champions started hosting matches at the overused Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos, the amount collected at the gates has been paltry.
Shikanda also said that moving matches to our alternative venue -- Bukhungu Stadium in Kakamega -- has raised the team’s expenses, though the ground has been attracting big crowds.
Leopards cannot get many fans to attend matches in Machakos as they would have ideally done if the fixtures were played in Nairobi.
Most clubs in Kenya are struggling to finance their operations, citing narrow resource bases and shrinking sponsorships. It has been challenging following SportPesa’s exit last year.
According to records made available by KPL Chief Executive Officer Jack Oguda, hosting a low-profile match costs at least Sh100,000 while a big match involving Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards can cost as much as Sh500,000. To play the mandatory two derbies per season costs at least Sh1 million.
In a season, where clubs have eight matches at home, costs cross the Sh1 million mark before away matches, domestic and continental engagements are taken into account. A breakdown of hosting a single game paints a grim financial picture for the resource-starved clubs.
