Omolo explains why Africans footballers should avoid Europe

Kenyan international Johanna Omolo is advocating budding African footballers to shun dream moves to Europe and instead stay in the continent.

The midfielder is currently the only active Kenyan footballer who has played in Europe the longest as he left the country when he was 17.

He joined Vise in Belgium back in 2007 and has since plied his trade in Belgium, Luxembourg, and now Turkey where he turns out for Erzurumspor.

Through his Johanna Omolo Foundation which supports poor families with school uniforms and regularly distributes sanitary pads to 500 schoolgirls, he hopes young footballers can stay in the country and comfortably earn a living. 

"We're trying to put into place a structure back home because if we do that, a lot of them will be able to earn a living." 

"It's easier there than here. But the difficulty is that when they see you here, they think: "Yeah, but you're there and you made it,” Omolo told DW Sports. 

His foundation has put him on the map as in 2019 he won the prestigious Fifpro Merit Award for his community work in Dandora which came with a Ksh2.5 million cash prize.

The 31-year-old also highlighted the slim success rate of footballers who travel to Europe with a burgeoning dream of turning pro.

"You have like 6,000 kids coming from Africa. But out of those 6,000, I can tell you maybe four, five will make it," he added.

Omolo will be hoping to achieve survival with Erzerumspor who are battling relegation as he hopes his family who reside in Bruges, Belgium will join him in Turkey.