Kenya Could Be Expelled From World Cup 2022 Qualifiers

Trouble is looming for Kenya as it has emerged that Football Kenya Federation (FKF) has failed to pay former national team head coach Adel Amrouche despite a grace period.

Football’s world governing body, FIFA ruled in October last year that Kenya should pay the Belgian gaffer US$1,000,000 (Ksh 108 million) for his unlawful dismissal.

And on March 23, the Zurich-based body and the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne granted Kenya a 30-day extension to settle the debt after their initial deadline to pay the former tactician lapsed without the promise being met.

The FKF was relying on the government to settle the debt but last week the Minister of Sports Amina Mohamed dropped the bombshell when she turned the federation request to bail the Kenyan football.

“I do not understand it. It is baffling to expect the government to pay for the irresponsible behaviour of a federation seeking to abdicate its role. This has nothing to do with the government. Why can’t FKF negotiate with FIFA to agree on a payment plan?” Amina told reporters.

FKF sacked Amrouche in August 2014 after he had been banned for a year by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for spitting on a referee when he was the head coach of Harambee Stars.

Kenya was playing away in Comoros but FKF officials at that time could not wait for the coach appeal, which he had launched with CAF.

Amrouche appeal was lifted by CAF and it is then that he headed to World Soccer governing body FIFA’s Dispute Resolution Chambers in search of justice and CAS.

The CAS stated that Kenya’s failure to pay the Belgian coach his full dues could force FIFA to institute unspecified sanctions on the federation.

The Algeria-born recently told Kenyan publication, Daily Nation, that he will not agree to any extension.

Kenya has been pooled alongside neighbours Uganda, Rwanda plus West African powerhouse Mali in the qualifiers which commence later this year.

It is worth noting that this is not the first time that an African country finds itself in this situation as Zimbabwe were here before in 2015 and the worst they got from FIFA was disqualification from the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.