Zambia/Kenya: Govt Urges Ticketless Fans to Keep Off Kasarani for Harambee Stars-Zambia Clash

Madagascar claimed their first win of their TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) campaign, beating the Central African Republic (CAR) 2-0 and keeping their quarter-final hopes alive. For Sebastien Ngato and his CAR squad, it was the end of their CHAN journey, but not without valuable lessons to carry forward.

By Irene Mwangi

Nairobi — Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has appealed to Kenyans without tickets for Sunday's Harambee Stars match against Zambia to stay away from Kasarani Stadium, warning that breaching Confederation of African Football (CAF) crowd limits could trigger security risks and attract further penalties.

Murkomen said Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja was holding high-level security meetings in Nairobi to plan for the fixture, which forms part of the ongoing continental tournament.

"From a security perspective, I would like to beg all Kenyans to really avoid going to the stadium unless you have a ticket," the CS said.

"If the capacity of the stadium is exceeded, you can easily have a massive disaster and a security challenge for all of us."

CAF has already penalised Kenya by restricting stadium attendance to 60 per cent of capacity. Murkomen urged fans to respect the regulations to safeguard the national team's chances and protect the country's image ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which Kenya will co-host.

"Let's abide by the regulations CAF has put in place. This is just a curtain-raiser. The real deal is 2027 when we host AFCON. We don't want Kenya banned from hosting because of crowd trouble," he said.

The CS lauded the passion of Kenyan supporters but stressed the need for order, recalling the Harambee Stars' gritty performance after playing with 10 men for more than 50 minutes in a previous match.

Murkomen urged the Ministry of Sports, county governments, and partners to set up big screens in parks and public spaces for fans to watch together.

"This is a positive problem.It shows the hunger Kenyans have for sports something they have yearned for over 40 years since we last hosted such a tournament in 1987,"he stated.

Murkomen added that the National Police Service will deploy adequate officers to enforce CAF's directives and ensure unticketed fans do not access Kasarani.

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