The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) President Hussein Mohammed has on Tuesday evening held a press conference to commend and clarify the happenings of Harambee Stars against Gabon match held at Nyayo Stadium on Sunday.
In a statement at the press conference, the FKF started by thanking all Kenyans for the incredible support that was shown on Sunday.
” The energy and passion in the stands were a true reflection of our love for the game, and seeing Harambee Stars play at home after years away was a special moment.” He stated.
He went ahead to appreciate the players, technical bench, match officials, all personnel, and organizers who made the long awaited event possible. He sent a special thank you to the Government of Kenya for the support offered to ensure the entire event was a success.
” We acknowledge that Sunday’s match came with challenges, particularly regarding stadium access due to the overwhelming turnout. While we are grateful for the massive support, it is clear that we must improve the matchday experience.”
He highlighted the issue that arose on matchday as fans found it difficult to access the stadium in a smooth manner, leading to commotion in some gates, but the situation was fast controlled.
” As Football Kenya Federation, we are already working on solutions, including the deployment of faster ticket scanners for future national team matches to ease stadium entry and prevent congestion. Additionally, we will prioritize the training of more matchday experiences. We also recognize the need to improve VVIP hospitality at our matches. This is an area we are working hard to enhance, ensuring that every fan who pays for premium experiences gets the treatment they deserve. We will continue refining these aspects to make attending national team games a world-class experience. “
Hussein announced that FKF managed to sell 17,130 regular, 1,331 VIP, and 107 VVIP tickets, and the federation generated Ksh. 6,498,000 from ticket sales.
“It is important to first understand the seating capacity of Nyayo Stadium. In the past, we’ve seen various figures, but the total number of seats at Nyayo is approximately 22,000—that’s the number we have from Sports Kenya,” Hussein said during a presser on Tuesday.
He stated that not all the tickets were sold out due to CAF regulations that require the stadium not to be fully filled for a match.
“The regular seating is about 18,000, VIP is 1,400, and we do not count the VVIP section as that is reserved for invited guests. According to CAF regulations, you are not supposed to sell 100% of the seats; you’re required to sell slightly fewer,” he added.
“For the sake of transparency, it’s important to clarify what has been sold. For regular seats, we sold 15,968 tickets, 1,331 for VIP, 329 car park slots, and 107 tickets for the VVIP area,”.
