Extreme Sports CEO Hussein Mohammed has added his voice to the growing chorus of football fans calling for an international standard football stadium in Mombasa.
At the moment, no football pitch in Mombasa meets international standards.
Renovation of Mombasa Stadium, the only pitch that comes close, has stalled for over a decade due to political interference.
Speaking in Mombasa after watching local club Bandari FC beat Premier League champions Gor Mahia by a solitary goal, Hussein said fans in Mombasa deserve better.
“Mombasa has good football players and fans and the popularity of the sport is sky-high. I think it is one of the areas that has got the most passionate fans," said Hussein.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have the right infrastructure here to support the growth of the game.”
The grassroots football developer has expressed interest in succeeding Nick Mwendwa at the helm of the Football Kenya Federation.
He is one of the proponents pushing for the construction of an international stadium that can host some of the 2027 Cup of Nations matches.
Kenya is among the three East African countries that will host the 36th edition of the biennial tournament, alongside Uganda and Tanzania.
“President William Ruto has promised Mombasa such a stadium. The fans will be happy to have teams from Africa and the world play in Mombasa,” said Hussein.
There is a lot of room for improvement in the Premier League.
“We need to do a lot, not only the infrastructure but also capacity building in the management of our clubs,” said Hussein.
“A lot of our youth can earn a decent living from football. It can be a good employer. All we need to do is have good governance, a vision and build the game from the bottom up — from the grassroots,” Mohammed said.
A good foundation will ensure Kenyan leagues flourish.
“It is critical that we invest today. If we don’t, it will be difficult to have a stable, lucrative and competitive league,” he said.
Transparency and accountability at all levels of the sport are key to generating trust among stakeholders and this will attract more investors.
“There is no need for our players to bend over backward to play abroad. If we improve our league, they can earn handsomely at home. It is up to us— the football fraternity — to make sure that we have the right leadership to execute this growth,” Hussein said.
Meanwhile, he said preparations for AFCON 2027 need to be scaled up. He also wants all stakeholders to pull in one direction to ensure Kenya becomes the best host among the three neighbours.
“AFCON cannot be done by the government only. We need everybody on board — federation and fans,” he said.
He said the Cote d'Ivoire set a very high standard that needs to be emulated by all other African countries.
He expects Morocco, who will host AFCON 2025, to put the bar even higher. He also wants Kenya build a team good enough to compete, not participate.