Machakos Stadium is no longer available to host Confederations of African Football (Caf) matches, the organization said on Friday.
In a letter to Football Kenya Federation (FKF), signed by Caf Competitions Deputy Director Khaled Nassar and exclusively obtained by Goal, Machakos has been removed from the list of approved stadia in Kenya.
The letter stated, “We regret to inform you Machakos is not on the list of approved stadiums and so you have to choose between Nyayo and Kasarani to host Caf matches.”
The letter from Caf is in response to a request by FKF to host the Women Olympic qualifying match between Kenya’s Harambee Starlets and Malawi scheduled for September 1 at Machakos Stadium.
When reached for comment, FKF CEO Barry Otieno confirmed receipt of the letter from Caf saying the situation will affect their plans.
“We had planned to use Machakos for the women qualifier but now Caf says the stadia is not fit to host matches," Otieno told Goal on Saturday.
"We don’t know what do because Nyayo is also closed and Kasarani might be a problem to get it because we are likely to have KPL matches played on the same day.”
With Nyayo still closed for renovations, only Kasarani is now available to host Caf matches in a situation which puts the country in an awkward position.
Nyayo was closed more than two years ago and was initially supposed to host the 2018 Africa Nations Championships (Chan) which was later taken to Morocco.
The move to ban Machakos will also affect Kenyan clubs taking part in continental assignments this season.
Kenyan Premier League (KPL) champions Gor Mahia will take part in the Caf Champions League while Bandari will feature in the Caf Confederation Cup by virtue of winning the FKF Shield Cup after beating Kariobangi Sharks in the final.
