Plans to kick off the 2026/2027 SportPesa Premier League season on September 19 have hit a major legal roadblock. The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) secretariat issued an unsigned communique on September 10 confirming the kickoff date “in compliance with the recent court ruling issued on August 28, 2026.” However, the league cannot legally start before a mandatory promotion and relegation play-off between Kariobangi Sharks and Mombasa United is conducted. Click this link https://a.meridianbet.ke/c/C7pYjz to start gaming and stand a chance of winning big with Meridianbet.
The crux of the impasse lies in conservatory orders issued by the Murang’a High Court, which strictly barred the federation from implementing or relying on the revised 2025 FKF Rules and Regulations Governing Football. Under these injunctions, the FKF is restrained from:
- Administering competitions or making promotion/relegation decisions based on the contested 2025 rules.
- Commencing the 2026/2027 season using the purported automatic relegation of the 16th, 17th, and 18th placed clubs from the 2025/2026 season.
- Skipping the end-of-season play-off mandated under Rules 2.9.1, 2.9.2, and 2.9.3 of the valid FKF Rules and Regulations Governing Kenyan Football (2019).
- Taking operational steps—including player registration, fixture scheduling, club licensing, or league composition announcements—derived from the 2025 rules.
- Executing actions that give effect to the disputed September 19, 2025 National Executive Committee (NEC) resolution pending the full hearing of the petition.
Internal federation division has further complicated the secretariat’s stance. On September 4, seven FKF NEC members—led by Federation Vice President McDonald Mariga—publicly broke ranks with the secretariat to demand strict adherence to the judicial directives.
“We support the application of the 2019 FKF Rules and Regulations, including the prescribed promotion and relegation play-offs, as required by the applicable court directions, and call upon all relevant FKF organs and stakeholders to respect and implement these requirements without further delays,” the seven members stated in a joint communique.
They emphasized that lawful progression is the only path forward for Kenyan football: “We call upon all relevant FKF organs, clubs, and stakeholders to work together, respect the FKF constitution and existing court orders, and ensure that the 2026/2027 season commences and proceeds lawfully, transparently, and without unnecessary delay.”
With the court explicitly barring fixture execution under the 2025 framework, the secretariat’s September 19 kickoff date remains legally untenable until Kariobangi Sharks and Mombasa United battle for the final top-flight slot under the 2019 rules.
