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CAF
17-07-2025
- Sport
- CAF
Kenya President Ruto in surprise Harambee Stars visit, wants focus on CHAN title
Published: Thursday, 17 July 2025 Kenya's President, Dr William Ruto, has urged the Harambee Stars to aim for the title on home soil as they gear up for their debut in the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024. The Head of State made a surprise visit to the national team's training base at the Moi Sports Centre Kasarani Annex on Wednesday evening, where they were wrapping up their first week of residential training. During his visit, President Ruto pledged full government support to ensure the team performs at its best. Kenya is co-hosting the biennial competition alongside East African neighbours Uganda and Tanzania. 'We are delighted as a country to host this tournament. We will be making history for Kenya,' said President Ruto. 'When I made the decision to have Kenya bid for both CHAN and AFCON, I believed we had the capacity and the ability.' Addressing the players, he added: 'You are going to represent more than 50 million Kenyans, and that is the weight of responsibility on your shoulders. "I have come here to tell you that we believe in your capacity and potential, and we will proudly cheer you to victory. "Know that the whole country is behind you. Let it be historic—if we are hosting it for the first time, then we must win.' The President also affirmed that Kenya is ready to welcome the continent, with the tournament's opening match set to take place in just under three weeks. Head coach Benni McCarthy expressed his gratitude for the visit: 'We are honoured as a team to have you grace us with your presence despite your busy schedule. We promise to give our best and work hard to deliver results.' The Harambee Stars will intensify their preparations in the coming days, as they gear up for a four-nation pre-CHAN tournament in Arusha, Tanzania, featuring fellow co-hosts Uganda and Tanzania, as well as Congo Brazzaville. The preparatory tournament kicks off on 21 July. Coach McCarthy has already trimmed his squad and made a few changes. Strikers Moses Shummah and Emmanuel Osoro have been ruled out of CHAN eligibility after signing professional contracts with Zambia's Power Dynamos. To bolster the squad, McCarthy has brought in Police FC midfielder Marvin Nabwire and Bandari goalkeeper Byrne Omondi. Kenya have been placed in a tough Group A where they will face two-time champions Morocco and DR Congo as well as Angola and Zambia.
CAF
14-07-2025
- Sport
- CAF
19 days to go: CHAN home advantage will drive us
Published: Monday, 14 July 2025 Kenya captain Aboud Omar says playing on home soil at the upcoming TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024 is a source of motivation rather than pressure for the Harambee Stars. The East African nation is set to make its debut in the competition and has been drawn in a challenging Group A alongside former champions DR Congo and Morocco, as well as Zambia and Angola. 'Playing at home is a huge advantage for us and not really pressure,' said Omar. 'Of course, there is huge expectation from everyone that we will do well, but we are turning that into motivation. "We have some experienced players in the team, and we have played under immense pressure before, so this will not be tough on us.' All of Kenya's group stage matches will be played at the iconic Moi Sports Centre Kasarani in Nairobi, a venue that Omar believes can be their fortress during the tournament. Kenya opens its campaign against DR Congo on August 3, and Omar insists they have the quality and mentality to start strongly. 'It is a tough group, but to be the best, you have to beat the best,' said Omar, who recently helped Police FC clinch the FKF Premier League title. 'We are focused on our preparation at the moment and just ensuring we have a team that plays together and plays with heart.' The Harambee Stars began residential training this week as the build-up to the tournament intensifies. The players and technical staff are now working to build cohesion and readiness ahead of their historic debut. With just weeks to go, excitement continues to build across the country, particularly in the capital Nairobi, where fans are gearing up to support the national team in what promises to be a memorable campaign on home soil.
CAF
14-07-2025
- Sport
- CAF
Kenya's captain Omar: CHAN home advantage will drive us, not pressure us
Published: Sunday, 13 July 2025 Kenya captain Aboud Omar says playing on home soil at the upcoming TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024 is a source of motivation rather than pressure for the Harambee Stars. The East African nation is set to make its debut in the competition and has been drawn in a challenging Group A alongside former champions DR Congo and Morocco, as well as Zambia and Angola. 'Playing at home is a huge advantage for us and not really pressure,' said Omar. 'Of course, there is huge expectation from everyone that we will do well, but we are turning that into motivation. "We have some experienced players in the team, and we have played under immense pressure before, so this will not be tough on us.' All of Kenya's group stage matches will be played at the iconic Moi Sports Centre Kasarani in Nairobi, a venue that Omar believes can be their fortress during the tournament. Kenya opens its campaign against DR Congo on August 3, and Omar insists they have the quality and mentality to start strongly. 'It is a tough group, but to be the best, you have to beat the best,' said Omar, who recently helped Police FC clinch the FKF Premier League title. 'We are focused on our preparation at the moment and just ensuring we have a team that plays together and plays with heart.' The Harambee Stars began residential training this week as the build-up to the tournament intensifies. The players and technical staff are now working to build cohesion and readiness ahead of their historic debut. With just weeks to go, excitement continues to build across the country, particularly in the capital Nairobi, where fans are gearing up to support the national team in what promises to be a memorable campaign on home soil.
CAF
22-04-2025
- Sport
- CAF
Member Association Focus: Rwanda
Published: Tuesday, 22 April 2025 Our weekly Member Association focus falls on Rwanda, a member of the Confédération Africaine de Football since 1978. National team Rwanda sit second in their FIFA World Cup qualifying group but fell five points behind top placed South Africa after two home qualifiers in March saw them lose to Nigeria and then draw with Lesotho. They must still play four more qualifiers in Group C away to Nigeria, Zimbabwe and South Africa and home to Benin. Rwanda had an upset win over heavyweights Nigeria in the last of their TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in November but it was not enough to book them a place in this year's tournament in Morocco. They finished third in Group D with eight points, on the same points as Benin but missed out on an inferior head-to-head record. Rwanda's women narrowly lost to Egypt in February in the first round of the qualifiers for the 2026 TotalEnergies CAF Women's Africa Cup of Nations finals. They were beaten 1-0 in Kigali in the first leg but forced a credible 2-2 draw in the return leg in Ismailia. Clubs APR FC have qualified to compete in the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League 20 times since 1997 but are still to reach the group phase of the competition. This season they beat Azam from Tanzania in the first round but then lost 4-2 on aggregate to Pyramids of Egypt in the last of the preliminary knockout rounds. In the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup, Police FC were eliminated in the first round by CS Constantine of Algeria. Rayon Sports represented Rwanda in last year's qualifiers for the TotalEnergies CAF Women's Champions League. They lost all three games in the CECAFA preliminaries. Leadership Alphonse Munyantwali was elected unopposed as president of the Rwanda Football Federation in 2023. He had previously been chairman of Police FC and is a former Governor of Western Province. History Rwanda qualified for the Cup of Nations finals in 2004, then one of the smallest countries to have made it to the tournament. They scored a sensational home win over highly fancied Ghana to win their place and in so doing caused a major sensation. In the tournament's opening game, hosts Tunisia had to scramble to edge Rwanda 2-1 before the Amavubi then held Guinea to a 1-1 draw. Rwanda, whose squad was coached by Ratomir Dujković and had only a handful of foreign-based players, finished their campaign with a shock 1-0 win over giant neighbours DR Congo. But the four point haul was not enough to see them through to the quarter-finals.
