LG and Airtel have both come out strongly to support Kenya Football in its growth.
The loss to Sudan by the National Soccer team Harambee Stars and the loss to Uganda by our under 23 years team proves and confirms that we do not have structures to develop soccer players from one stage to the next level.
It is quite a shame and disgrace for both our national teams to continue losing matches up to a point where Kenyans do not have any confidence in the results as the outcome can be predicted.
Right now, we have seen sponsors coming in to support football at different levels but this goodwill has not been translated into a winning formula since the people who have been charged with the authority of running football in the Country simply do not know how to do so.
All the structures that are supposed to be in place so that we can have continuity have gaping holes that cannot be filled. In short the structures have collapsed and Kenyan football has reached a stage where it is a matter of gambling.
Airtel's annual sponsorship of the Kenya Secondary School Sports games for the next three years is a huge investment, which football administrators and especially the Federation need to take stock and invest in the schools program as one of the avenues of making sure that talent is tapped right from the grassroots.
If sponsors like Airtel can see this and they are in the telecommunication industry, why can't the officials who have been charged with the responsibility of running and developing football not see this?
The LG Africa Cup that featured Kenya Vs Sudan has definitely raised the standards of sponsorship presentation not only in football but all sports.
LG pumped and invested in money to put up a good show and off course pull off a marketing strategy that works for them, using football.
By now, both FKL and KFF would have been having an able marketing team whose duty would have been to go out and secure sponsorship and also create events that will generate sponsorship and interest.
These events need to be built right from the junior level going up to the senior level.
Football cannot continue to rely on gate collection as is the case to raise funds for development. Kenyan football has to be run in a professional manner and it has to be run like a business, with all the structures that make a successful organisation get good profits.
Already the Kenya Secondary School Sports Association games have provided this opportunity, what are we waiting for, if our professional players like Dennis Oliech and Mac Donald Mariga came through the school structure?
Hussein Mohammed
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