Kenya bids for 2019 Africa Cup of Nations

Nairobi: Football Kenya Federation (FKF) and the Kenyan government are in the process of submitting a bid to host the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and the 2015 Africa Youth Championships.

"After the opening of bids by CAF, football Kenya has been seeking government guarantees to solidify the bid as required by the African Football Governing body," the federation said Saturday. "We can now confirm that the government through the minister for youth affairs and sports has given us a green light to bid for the championships," it said in a statement. "The bid boost has been given a shot in the arm by the recent visit to the country by Bernard Mfubusa from Rwanda whose mission was to inspect our existing stadia and hotels." Kenya has two existing FIFA approved stadiums, Moi International Sports Centre and the Nyayo National Stadium. The Moi stadium in Kisumu and Mombasa Municipal Stadium have been earmarked for upgrading to support the bid. Kenya was chosen to host the 1996 AFCON before it withdrew as the Confederation of African Football (CAF) sanctioned the country from their competitions for two years. Earlier, the Democratic Republic of Congo submitted its intention to host the 2019 tournament. "With the networks we have established, we believe we stand a good chance of getting these events," it said. IANS