Harambee Stars Coach Benni McCarthy Gives Honest Take on Kenya's AFCON Dream: 'Maybe 10 Years From Now'

Harambee Stars head coach Benni McCarthy has offered a candid assessment of Kenya’s continental prospects, stating that while the national team is making steady progress, lifting an Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) trophy remains a long-term project, one that could take up to a decade to fully realise.

Speaking ahead of Kenya's Group D qualifier double-header against South Africa, the former Manchester United attacking coach emphasised the importance of humility, proper resource allocation, and realistic goal-setting.

Having guided Harambee Stars through their opening two qualifying matches, Benni McCarthy is aware of the tactical, financial, and structural gaps separating East African football from the continent's traditional juggernauts.

With Kenya preparing to co-host AFCON 2027 alongside East African neighbours Uganda and Tanzania under the East Africa Pamoja banner, Benni McCarthy insists that managing public expectations will be crucial to building a sustainable football ecosystem.

While acknowledging the emergence of promising young talent within the current squad, Benni McCarthy believes that host status should not mask the reality on the pitch.

Nations like Morocco, Senegal, Egypt, and Cote d'Ivoire operate with multi-million-dollar pipelines and elite European academy access that Kenya cannot match overnight.

Evaluating the gap between Harambee Stars and Africa's heavyweight teams, McCarthy explained: "Kenya doesn't have a long history in African football, where they've done well in previous AFCONs. But now we have a new generation of players, young players. Many of them play their football in Europe.

“So the team, the national team, is slowly but surely getting much better to a good level, and even if you were to pay me millions and millions of dollars to win AFCON, I don't think Kenya has the resources and the team strong enough to compete with Morocco, Egypt, Cote d'Ivoire, Senegal. Those are powerhouses."

Rather than making grand declarations to appease fans, Benni McCarthy’s philosophy centres on transparency.

He argues that Kenya's primary focus for the 2027 tournament must be executing an exceptional tournament organisationally and establishing a solid baseline on the pitch.

Highlighting the need for an honest assessment of current capabilities, the Bafana Bafana legend added: "Guinea can also have fantastic players. Those are the powerhouses in African football. Kenya can win AFCON, but it's highly unlikely we would have a chance to win. I'm not disrespecting anybody.

“I'm just being honest and humble in that opinion. But for us, the main objective is to host the tournament and make sure that the AFCON is a big success for Kenya, for Tanzania, and for Uganda, who are hosting."

To build towards long-term success, Benni McCarthy envisions a phased development model similar to how underdog nations have historically overperformed on the global stage.

For Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, advancing beyond the group phase on home soil would represent a historic milestone.

Mapping out a realistic roadmap for the co-hosts leading toward a ten-year horizon, McCarthy said: "And that these countries get out of the group stages and get into the second round of the qualifications.

“And from there, as we saw in the FIFA World Cup, many African countries were able to get out of the group stages and hopefully progress slowly and maybe get to quarter-finals, semi-finals possibility but to win AFCON, maybe 10 years from now."

Facing an in-form Bafana Bafana side in November will serve as an ideal measuring stick for Benni McCarthy’s squad.