Harambee Stars coach Benni McCarthy finally releases his biography
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Reading Time: 3min | Mon. 02.02.26. | 19:02
It is titled Benni, and carries a prominent endorsement from José Mourinho, who writes on the cover: “Benni had everything that a coach loves in a player.”
The long-awaited biography of Harambee Stars head coach Benni McCarthy has been released. The book marks the latest chapter in the career of one of African football’s most influential figures.
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The book’s launch was announced through a cinematic Instagram teaser produced in collaboration with Pan Macmillan South Africa.
The low-lit, reflective video sets a measured tone for the release, presenting the biography as a candid account of McCarthy’s career rather than a celebratory retrospective.
It is titled Benni, and carries a prominent endorsement from José Mourinho, who writes on the cover: “Benni had everything that a coach loves in a player.”
The quote invites the readers to indulge on the book’s focus on elite-level football, dressing-room dynamics and the pressures that shaped McCarthy’s career at the highest level.
Co-authored with veteran football journalist Mark Gleeson, the book traces McCarthy’s rise from the Cape Flats in South Africa to the summit of European football.
McCarthy remains South Africa’s all-time leading scorer and is still the only South African footballer to have won the UEFA Champions League, a feat he achieved with FC Porto in 2004 under Mourinho.
The biography revisits his early move to Europe as a teenager, his success with Ajax in the Netherlands, spells in Spain, and his most productive period in England with Blackburn Rovers, where he established himself as one of the Premier League’s most consistent goal scorers of the era.
At the international level, McCarthy featured prominently at the Africa Cup of Nations, scored at the FIFA World Cup, and became the attacking focal point for Bafana Bafana over more than a decade.
Beyond his on-field achievements, Benni addresses the challenges and conflicts that defined his career. McCarthy details his confrontations with gang leaders in his neighbourhood, disagreements with coaches, and strained relationships with football administrators.
His complex relationship with the South African national team is examined in depth, with the book describing it as a story that has never been properly explained… until now.
Following his retirement from playing, McCarthy transitioned into coaching, winning trophies in South Africa before moving into European football as a first-team coach at Manchester United under Erik ten Hag.
According to the book, those experiences helped shape his coaching philosophy, which emphasises player management, direct communication, and emotional engagement.
McCarthy is currently tasked with leading Harambee Stars as Kenya prepares to co-host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations. The biography positions him as a coach shaped by both success and adversity, bringing a player-centred but uncompromising approach to his current role.
Gleeson, who has covered African football since 1992 and is a recipient of the CAF Gold Order of Merit, provides historical context throughout the book.
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His contribution ensures the biography balances personal narrative with a broader account of African football’s evolution during McCarthy’s career.
