Sports Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen is confident that Kenya will clinch the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations title on home soil if Kenya U-20 players are eased into the senior team in time.Murkomen made the remarks during the ninth edition of the Mozzart Bet Chemususu Dam Half Marathon held on Saturday in Baringo County, in an event attended by three Cabinet Secretaries.Besides Murkomen, Roads and Transport Minister Davies Chirchir and his Energy and Petroleum counterpart Opiyo Wandayi were also present.Murkomen said the potential Rising Stars had demonstrated in previous tournaments was convincing enough as far as their integration into the senior team and winning AFCON was concerned.##NAJAVA_MECA_5577##The junior team secured the ticket to represent the country in the 2025 AFCON finals following their second-place finish in the CECAFA qualifiers.Kenya will jointly host the 2027 AFCON alongside Uganda and Tanzania following the decision by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to award the three countries the hosting rights last year.Zimbabwe coach puts huge tag on Michael Olunga while singing his praises”The U20, led by Aldrine Kibet who comes from this constituency (sic), is the future of Kenya because we have invested in our youth. That is the team that will win us the 2027 AFCON title,” he said.Meanwhile, Murkomen weighed in on Harambee Stars’ missed 2025 AFCON ticket hunt which seemingly left a bitter taste in the mouths of Kenyans.A look in Engin Firat’s 3-year Harambee Stars tenure delivering three competitive winsStars failed to seal a ticket to the AFCON after playing Zimbabwe to a one-all draw, in the penultimate round of the qualifiers held on Friday, at Peter Mokaba Stadium in South Africa.Murkomen sensationally claimed that the team felt the effects of failing to integrate youthful players into the squad for a long time.”We have relied on the same group of players for a long time,” he added.
