Kenya to host Zimbabwe in first 2025 AFCON qualifier

Kenya's Harambee Stars will play Zimbabwe and Namibia in their opening two matches of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, following the fixture release by CAF on Sunday.

The Stars are placed in Group J alongside Cameroon, Namibia, and Zimbabwe in the qualifiers for the tournament, which is set to be hosted in Morocco.

According to the fixtures released by CAF, Kenya will play Zimbabwe and Namibia in the first two games between September 2nd and 10th. They will host Zimbabwe before traveling to Namibia.

This will be followed by a two-legged affair against Cameroon during the October international break between October 7th and 15th. They will first play Cameroon away before hosting them days later.

The qualifiers will conclude during the November international break between November 11th and 19th. First, Kenya will play Zimbabwe away, then Namibia at home. The top two teams from the group will qualify for the biennial tournament.

The biggest elephant in the room is whether Kenya will get clearance to use Nyayo Stadium for the qualifiers.

Harambee Stars were forced to host their World Cup qualifiers against Burundi and the Ivory Coast in June in Malawi due to the lack of a CAF-approved stadium in Kenya.

FKF President Nick Mwendwa had earlier revealed that they would seek a temporary license from CAF to use Nyayo National Stadium.

“We will apply for a provisional license later in July, and I assure you, we will get it. I want to promise Kenyans that if the minister finishes the work, then we are going to host AFCON qualifiers in September in the country,” Mwendwa said in an earlier interview.

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