The Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) has disclosed the list of officials who will take charge of the 2026 World Cup qualifier between Kenya and Burundi.
Harambee Stars are scheduled to lock horns with the Swallows at the Bundi National Stadium on Friday before their eagerly-awaited encounter with the Elephants of Ivory Coast on June 11.
Jean Quattara from Burkina Faso will take the role of centre referee with compatriots Seydou Tiama and Habib Oumar Sanou serving as first and second assistant referees respectively.
Benoit Bado has been appointed the fourth official while South African Bennett Kenneth Bailey will preside over as match commissioner. Tanzanian Leslie Liunda will act as the referee assessor.
Football Kenya Federation (FKF) said both the matches pitting Kenya against Burundi and Ivory Coast will be broadcast live on KBC TV, allowing fans across the region to partake in the excitement.
Harambee Stars have been preparing for the match since they arrived in the Southeast African nation over the weekend.
The plane carrying the Kenyan contingent touched down at the Lilongwe International Airport on Sunday at 8:30 am local time.
Harambee Stars’ head coach Engin Firat said they have been treated well since arriving in the country. “We appreciate the kind of treatment we’ve received here right from Day One. We’ve been made to feel at home,” Firat said.
“We’re keen to polish our act before Friday and I’m happy we’ve managed to address all the important areas but we still have a couple of things to work on,” he added.
His sentiments were echoed by the local football governing body who lauded their Malawian counterparts for making them comfortable in the country. “FKF extends its deepest gratitude to the Malawi Football Association, the Malawi people, and all stakeholders, including Government officials and fans, for their support and participation in these significant matches,” FKF said in a statement.
The Burundi national team is scheduled to arrive in Lilongwe on Wednesday, June 5, 2024, at 12:50 local time. Stars trained for a week at the Police Sacco stadium in Nairobi before leaving for Malawi.
Kenya is third in Group ‘F’ behind Ivory Coast and Gabon. They will be groping for their second win in the group having previously thumped continental underdogs Seychelles 5-0 during their last tie in Abidjan in November last year.
The Kenyan lads will also flex muscles with Gambia who seemed rejuvenated after landing the services of immediate former Gor Mahia head coach Johnathan McKinstry.
Only the top team in the group will qualify for the 48-team World Cup, which will be played across 16 cities in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Four of the best runners-up from the nine groups will have a chance in a playoff that will determine Caf’s representative in the Inter-confederation playoffs involving six teams, which will decide the last two Fifa World Cup berths
