The chairman of the CHAN Local Organizing Committee (LOC) Nicholas Musonye has provided insights into the reasons behind the decision to postpone the tournament from February to August 2025.
Last Tuesday, the Confederation of African Football officially announced the postponement following recommendations from CAF’s technical infrastructure experts, who have been closely monitoring the preparation efforts in the three host nations.
They emphasized the need for additional time to ensure the infrastructure and facilities meet the required standards for a successful African Nations Championship.
Earlier reports suggested that Kenya’s readiness was a major factor in the decision to postpone the tournament, with Nyayo and Kasarani Stadia still under renovations.
However, Musonye has clarified that the postponement was not solely due to Kenya’s preparations. He explained that while Uganda and Tanzania were ready with their stadiums, both countries were still working on essential infrastructure, particularly the roads leading to the match venues.
“The postponement wasn’t just about Kenya. Two teams haven’t qualified yet, and you can’t organize a tournament without all the participants,” said Musonye in an interview with NTV.
“Also, how could we have played in Tanzania when roads were still being constructed around the venues? The same issue applies to Uganda. So, the postponement wasn’t entirely about Kenya,” he added.
He noted that Kenya’s main challenge was the readiness of the final two training grounds, Kasarani Annex 2 and Kirigiti Stadium, which were still under development.
“We had committed to having five training grounds ready, but only three were available—Ulinzi Sports Complex, Police Sacco, and one at Kasarani Annex. The remaining two were supposed to be Kasarani Annex 2 and Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu. If those two had been completed, we would have been fully prepared to host CHAN,” he said.
Regarding the stadia, Musonye expressed confidence that Kenya would have been ready in time for the tournament.
“We committed to providing two venues, Nyayo and Kasarani. We focused on getting Nyayo ready, and it’s now complete. Kasarani is 80% finished, with only minor details like the roof remaining. We planned to finish that after CHAN, with AFCON in mind.”
Musonye emphasized that more time for logistical preparations would have allowed Kenya to be fully prepared to host the tournament on its own, let alone as a co-host.
“We were only given the rights to host CHAN last year, leaving us with limited time. If we had received the rights earlier, we would have been ready by now. As it stands, Kenya has the capacity to host the tournament,” he added.
Looking ahead, Musonye is optimistic about Kenya’s ability to host future major tournaments.
“After hosting CHAN, we’ll be ready for AFCON as well. Kenya will have the capacity to host AFCON on its own. We have two major stadia in Nairobi, one in Eldoret, and we’re planning additional stadiums in Western Kenya, Kisumu, and Mombasa,” he concluded.
