Football Kenya Federation Appeals Tournament Ruling, Arguing Score Adjustment Affects Group Standings After Abandoned Match.
NAIROBI, Kenya – The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) has lodged an official appeal against a decision by the CECAFA Organizing Committee to record Kenya’s abandoned opening match against Sudan at the 2026 CECAFA U-17 Women’s Championship as a 3-0 victory.
The match, which saw Kenya dominate proceedings with a commanding 16-0 lead, was abandoned in the 54th minute after Sudan were reduced to fewer than the required minimum of seven players on the field.
Despite Kenya’s emphatic advantage at the time of stoppage, CECAFA ruled that the fixture would be recorded as a 3-0 win in line with tournament regulations governing abandoned matches.
While the decision awarded Kenya the expected three points, the ruling significantly affected the Group A standings. Tanzania finished top of the group on goal difference, while Kenya settled for second place, despite their overwhelming performance against Sudan.
FKF has now challenged the decision, arguing that reducing the scoreline from 16-0 to 3-0 does not accurately reflect what occurred on the pitch and could unfairly disadvantage Kenya in the tournament standings.
The federation is seeking a review of the ruling, urging CECAFA to reconsider the outcome based on the circumstances that led to the match abandonment.
The decision has generated debate among football stakeholders, with questions raised over whether the scoreline at the time of abandonment should have been maintained or considered in determining the final group rankings.
CECAFA is yet to issue a public response regarding FKF’s appeal.
The Kenyan Junior Starlets had entered the tournament as one of the leading teams and continued their strong showing with impressive performances during the group stage.
