Mashemeji derby to be played in Nairobi this Sunday
The SportPesa Premier League match involving AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia will now be played at the Nyayo Stadium on Sunday.
This was confirmed on Wednesday morning in a press statement sent to newsrooms by the Kenyan Premier League Limited.
“Following a successful meeting between the Kenyan Premier League management and the management of the Nyayo Stadium,” the statement sent by KPL chief executive Jack Oguda read in part.
“(The) Kenyan Premier League would like to confirm that the facility owners have agreed to exceptionally allow AFC Leopards/Gor Mahia match to be played at the venue on Sunday. We encourage members to come out in large numbers to restore and confirm our superiority.”
This announcement contradicts another circular released by the KPL 24 hours earlier, explaining that this match, popularly referred to as the “Mashemeji derby” within local football circles, had been postponed indefinitely due to lack of appropriate venue.
The match was originally slated for the Afraha Stadium in Nakuru on Sunday, but Leopards management were not comfortable with that arrangement.
The team argued that there was a possibility of losing out on a huge chunk of income from the gate sales, estimated to be around Sh3 million, since the venue cannot hold more than 10,000 fans.
Gor Mahia and Leopards are currently chalking up impressive results in the league, making this potentially one of the most exciting games of the season -should it go ahead this weekend.
The Nyayo and Kasarani stadiums in Nairobi are currently undergoing government commissioned renovations, in readiness to host both the IAAF World Under-18 Championship and the Africa Nations Championship tournament in July this year and January/February next year.
