Gor Mahia launch women's football team

© Gor Mahia

FOOTBALL Gor Mahia launch women's football team

Festus Chuma 15:37 - 04.02.2024

Gor Mahia FC has launched a women's football team aligning with CAF's new regulations to include women's teams in club structures.

Gor Mahia FC has taken a significant step forward in promoting gender equality in sports by officially launching their women's team, Gor Mahia Queens FC. 

The historic event took place at Stima Sacco Club, Nairobi, marking a new era in the club's commitment to nurturing female talent in football.

The launch of Gor Mahia Queens is a direct response to the Confederation of African Football (CAF)'s Club Licensing requirement, which now mandates that clubs participating in inter-club competitions must include a women's team in their structure. 

In June 2023, Gor Mahia entered a transformative partnership with Acakoro Ladies, a collaboration that has now culminated in the rebranding of Acakoro Ladies to Gor Mahia Queens Football Club. 

© Gor Mahia

The strategic alliance is in line with CAF's new rules which were implemented last year to ensure that clubs participating in international competitions have women's teams.

"Specifically on the sporting criteria in the CAF Men’s Club Licensing Regulations (edition 2022), CAF has now introduced a requirement for women’s football teams. Clubs intending to participate in the CAF Interclubs competitions must have at minimum one (01) women’s first team participating in a competition sanctioned by the member association. To comply with this requirement, clubs may operate the women’s team(s) themselves or have a written agreement with another entity who operates the team(s)," stated CAF in June 2023.

Besides the sporting criterion, CAF's five-pillar criteria for participating clubs include infrastructure, personnel, administrative, legal, and financial aspects. 

These comprehensive requirements underscore the governing body's commitment to professionalizing and standardizing club football across Africa.

Gor Mahia's decision to launch a women's team also comes in the wake of their failed attempt to participate in the 2023/2024 CAF Champions League.

The club's certificate was withdrawn by the federation's First Instance Body (FIB) due to various violations including Article 60 of the CAF's men's club licensing rules.

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