Nairobi — Journalists were left in stitches after Caf President Patrice Motsepe said he trusts in President William Ruto's promise to have Kenya ready to co-host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations with Uganda and Tanzania.
Motsepe had expressed hope that the country would be ready to co-host the continental showpiece, adding that President Ruto is a 'man of his word'.
"I trust President Ruto...is there a lot of work to be done? Yes...but I trust him. There is a lot of work to be done but he is a man of his word," the South African said amidst laughter from his audience.
The two had met on Monday morning at State House Nairobi where President Ruto underlined his government's commitment to complete the construction of the stadia to co-host the continental showpiece -- as well as next year's Africa Nations Championships (CHAN).
"Kenya will be ready to co-host the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in 2027. The preparations of our three stadia - renovation of Kasarani and Nyayo and construction of the brand new Talanta Sports City Stadium - are progressing well," President Ruto said.
He added: "We commit that Kasarani and Nyayo will be ready by the end of this year for African Nations Championships 2025, while Talanta Sports City Stadium will be completed by December 2025 for AFCON 2027."
Motsepe has been in the country since Sunday where he undertook a tour of the Nyayo National Stadium, Kasarani Stadium, the Ulinzi Sports Complex as well as the 60,000-seater Talanta City Stadium, which is under construction.
The Caf supremo also chaired an Exco meeting in the capital before which he confirmed of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania will co-host CHAN, traditionally reserved of locally-based players.
"We are going to host a historic CHAN next year and I am confident that the AFCON in 2027 will be a massive success. I toured three stadiums yesterday and I am impressed with the work going on," Motsepe said.
Kenya has twice had the opportunity to host a continental championships in 1996 and 2018 but lost the hosting rights for failure to complete the requisite infrastructure in time.
