McDonald Mariga Hints at 'European-Level’ Friendlies for Harambee Starlets Ahead of WAFCON

Having seen the full benefits of playing high-level friendly matches for Harambee Starlets, Football Kenya Federation (FKF) is keen to get more of such before the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.

Starlets put up a brave performance against 67th-ranked India, beating them 2-0, before impressing against Australia, ranked 15th in the world, although they lost 2-0 in the FIFA Series in Nairobi.

In both matches, Kenya showed glimpses of what they were capable of but they also exposed some of their weaknesses, especially in defence and in attack, where they created lots of chances but failed to utilise.

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As they gear up for WAFCON, slated between July 25 and August 18, FKF vice president McDonald Mariga has hinted at plans to have the team camp in Europe and play against another top-ranked country before heading to the continental tournament in Morocco.

“After this FIFA Series, we have professional players who we cannot keep in camp for long. There is that window of calling up players and having them in camp,” Mariga told TV 47.

“We will try to talk to the clubs so that we get players in early and we are also hoping that their leagues can end early and these friendlies give us an idea of the players we will use at WAFCON.

“If we bring them early in camp and organise other friendlies out of the country, have one camp in Europe, then they get that exposure of playing at a higher level we will have a good team,” he further stated.

FKF had set up a pre-WAFCON camp for the Starlets in Miramas, France before the tournament, which was initially set to kick off on March 17, was moved to the July-August dates.

It remains to be seen if the plans still stand and which teams Beldine Odemba’s charges will face in their pre-WAFCON friendlies but Kenya is determined to impress in Morocco as they return to the continental tournament after 10 years.