Harambee Starlets Coach Relishing Australia and India Tests at Upcoming FIFA Series

Harambee Starlets coach Beldine Odemba has expressed her excitement at the prospect of playing highly ranked sides in the upcoming FIFA Series.

Kenya is set to host the women’s FIFA Series at Nyayo Stadium from April 11-15 with Australia, ranked 15th in the world, 67th-placed India and Malawi, positioned 153rd joining hosts Harambee Starlets, who are in position 134 on the FIFA ranking.

Playing against Australia and India will be a particularly massive test for Kenya and for Odemba, it is just what the doctor ordered for her team which is still young.

PAY ATTENTION: Follow us on Google News, Stay informed with Latest Sport News

“It is exciting that we are playing the FIFA Series at home,” Odemba said on Monday. “We are playing with good teams, teams well placed and a team like Malawi which I am looking forward to see what the team looks like as they also try to get ready for WAFCON because they qualified for WAFCON for the first time.”

“It is to see the team and how the girls are gelling and the team is in transition so such friendlies are good enough for us to ensure that the team is gelling. We shall move forward as a unit and everyone understands where we are at the moment.”

Odemba has also stressed the importance of the mini-tournament to her team’s preparations for the 2026 Women’s Cup of Nations (WAFCON 2026) which will be played from July 25-August 16, having been moved from March 17-April 3.

“It will help us see how far we are for the WAFCON. It was a blessing in disguise that it was postponed and it is good for us to play more friendlies before we go for the tournament,” added Odemba, who expects all her foreign-based players to arrive on Tuesday.

Kenya will play India on April 11 the same day that Australia will take on Malawi with the winners of the two matches meeting in the final while the losers play each other in the third-place playoff four days later.

Good preparations are paramount for Starlets who have a tough WAFCON 2026 group that also includes hosts Morocco, finalists in the last two editions, as well as Algeria and Senegal, who reached the quarter-final of WAFCON 2024.