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Report: Kenyan teams earned Sh40m from sale of players last year

Harambee Stars midfielder Timothy Ouma poses for a photo with other members of Czech side Slavia Prague after being unveiled by the team on February2, 2025. 

Photo credit: Pool

What you need to know:

  • Uganda accounted for the highest number of newcomers in the FKF-PL at eight followed by Tanzania at six.
  • In women’s club football, 21 Kenyan players moved abroad, and four foreign players joined from other countries. Tanzania was the preferred destination for the Kenyan players with 11 transfers.

Kenya trails countries in the region and those from north Africa in terms of revenue the country’s football teams earned from the sale of players to other countries, a report by the world football governing body Fifa has shown.

Kenya came a distant second in transfer fees received for men’s club football in East Africa last year. The Global Transfer Report 2024 released by Fifa last week shows that international transfers in men’s professional football globally reached a staggering 22,779 last year.

Total expenditure by clubs in transfer fees amounted to Sh1.1 trillion ($8.59 billion) globally. In East Africa, the Global Transfer Report showed that Kenya trailed Tanzania in terms of money generated from the sale of players to foreign clubs.

The report is significant because it is a pointer to the competitiveness of both the players and the leagues that these players play in. Tanzania’s dominance in the region is no surprise, as its top league, the Tanzanian Premier League (TPL), is the most followed in the region, thanks to its adoption of professional standards. Consequently, players in the TPL enjoy significant exposure to talent scouts internationally.

According to the report, Kenya received a sum of Sh40.8 million ($316,000) in transfer fees for men’s club football, compared to Tanzania’s Sh115.7 million ($896,000). 

England tops globally with a staggering Sh173 billion ($ 1.34 billion) while Mali leads Africa with Sh3.2 billion ($25.4 million). The report said 37 players from FKF-PL joined other foreign clubs last year, resulting in a 76.2 percent growth rate in outgoing transfer fees.

Tanzania was the most preferred destination for Kenyan players, with 11 Kenyan players heading to TPL, followed by seven who left for Uganda.

Fifa’s mid-year 2024 transfer report, released in September, had established that the biggest transfer by a Kenyan male footballer at the time was Stanley Wilson’s move from Kariobangi Sharks to Swedish giants AIK football. AIK parted with Sh25.7 million to sign the 18-year-old midfielder from Sharks.

Midfielder Duke Abuya’s loan move from Kenya Police to TPL’s Young Africans Sports Club (Yanga) fetched Sh6.5 million.

Other notable moves by Kenyan male players last year include striker Eric Kapaito’s move from Tusker to Tanzania’s Namungo FC, goalkeeper Brian Bwire from Tusker to South Africa’s Polokwane City, and defender Christopher Oruchum from Posta Rangers to Tanzania’s Pamba Jiji FC. Tanzanian clubs spent a total of Sh236.9 million to sign new players, but the report did not specify what Kenyan clubs spent.  However, the FKF-PL recorded 36 foreign transfers. 

Uganda accounted for the highest number of newcomers in the FKF-PL at eight followed by Tanzania at six.

In women’s club football, 21 Kenyan players moved abroad, and four foreign players joined from other countries. Tanzania was the preferred destination for the Kenyan players with 11 transfers.