Doomed Mathare United, whose die was cast in the Football Kenya Federation Premier League (FKFPL) when they decided to forfeit three of their season’s matches, have published yet another statement asking questions about the sorry state being currently witnessed in Kenyan football.In their hard-hitting letter released on Wednesday 18 May, the Bob Munro-founded club raised questions about the present state of Kenyan football that has seen the quality of management among various other reasons lead to the massive decline of the sport, consequently causing a number of the teams, especially the community-based clubs, to face escalating money problems that has left them at serious risk of financial collapse.FKF Transition Committee confirms Mathare’s relegation“Today, nearly half of our FKF PL clubs, especially the community-based clubs, are facing escalating financial problems and, like MUFC, are at serious risk of financial collapse. Also, today, the plight of most clubs is largely due to the fact that the top league itself has been badly mismanaged and now doesn’t even have any TV, title rights or other sponsors,” the statement read.“Over the last five years, have most of our top clubs become financially stable and sustainable? Related to that is this equally crucial question: Has our top league also become more financially stable and sustainable? The answer to both is sadly “No”,” the chairman stated.Mathare blames Caretaker Committee for its woes, says Transition Committee cannot, legally, relegate the clubMunro went ahead to pose questions digging into the way which football is currently run in the country.“Should we be asking ‘How best to amend and strengthen the FKF Constitution?’ or asking ‘What are the best practices for managing football in other highly successful football nations?’.For example, in most UEFA countries are the top football officials elected or appointed through a professional selection process involving key shareholders?Bob Munro still asking the hard questions #KenyanFootball pic.twitter.com/rJoAtCKfq9— Jeff Kinyanjui (@Nyash88) May 18, 2022 Are the top leagues owned and managed by the national football associations (NFAs) of by private companies in which the clubs are the shareholders?Are most NFAs themselves associations or private companies?Are most top clubs associations or private companies?As their nationally most popular sport, are most clubs located in their capital city or dispersed throughout their country?Are most clubs named after their owner/sponsor or their geographic location?Are most stadia, a major source of revenue, owned and managed by governments or by clubs?Why in Kenyan football should we accept or aim for anything less than the best practices?Full Mathare United statement
