Kenya’s national football team, the Harambee Stars will play Russia in an international friendly next month in Turkey
The announcement has been made by the national team which said that the match will be played on October 16 in Atalya.
Russia’s national team was banned last year by UEFA and FIFA from participating in their competitions until further notice following the invasion of Ukraine. Moscow which was even supposed to host the Champions League final last year lost its hosting rights courtesy of the war.
The Russian national team was also unable to compete at the 2022 World Cup, while their Nations League fixtures in 2022 were all canceled. They have also been banned from Euro 2024 qualifying.
Russian clubs, meanwhile, haven’t been allowed to play in the Champions League, Europa League, or Europa Conference League since the ban was announced.
However, while Russian national team has been banned from UEFA and FIFA competitions, they can still compete in friendlies which aren’t organised by the aforementioned governing bodies.
Last year, Russia took on Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan in friendlies. During the March international break, they faced key political ally Iran in Tehran and hosted Iraq in the first international match on Russian soil since the invasion.
Most countries that are allies with Western powers are afraid to engage Russia and have therefore avoided contact all together including in sporting activities.
Kenya, however has employed strategic ambiguity in order to reap maximum benefits from both Russia, Ukraine and also the Western countries involved in the war.
Just last week, President William Ruto met Ukrainan president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, US. He pledged to support Ukraine during the war crisis following its invasion by Russia.
“You have demonstrated a lot of resilience and we know it’s been difficult for the people of Ukraine, they’re strong and that you have our support,” said Ruto.
“As I told you my brother, we believe in a world order based on rules,” he added.
Today, just a few days later, Kenya has announced that its football team will have an international friendly match with Russia that will definitely send diplomatic shock waves across the world.
Russia is a major sponsor of the fertiliser subsidy program that the Ruto Administration is depending on in order to increase production by farmers. In August Russia donated 34,000 tones of NPK fertiliser for the program.
“Russia has donated the fertiliser to friends to address the challenge of hunger on the ground. It is basically an effort to support friends in Kenya,” said Russian Ambassador Dmitry Maximychev, adding it will be blended in accordance with Kenyan standards.
He said the fertiliser will contribute towards the achievement of sustainable development.
“The Russian Federation is proud to contribute to this consignment of fertilisers, which are crucial for global agriculture,” he said.
