Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Hussein Mohammed has used a trip to the inaugural FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Azerbaijan to restate his development agenda and fire a fresh warning at critics within his own administration, as Kenya's under-15 boys topped their group unbeaten.

Hussein met FIFA president Gianni Infantino on the sidelines of the tournament at the Hovsan Competition Complex in Baku, The Star and Pulse Sports reported on Monday, 26 October.

"There are no short cuts"

In remarks carried by both outlets, Hussein said Kenya had to speed up investment in infrastructure, youth development and the commercial side of the game if it hoped to close the gap with leading football nations.

"There are no short cuts," he said, calling for the immediate construction of high-performance technical centres and of pitches for schools and local communities. He also said leagues and competitions for boys and girls at every level had to be strengthened, and that football should be commercialised so it becomes "a viable economic pillar" for young people and the wider sports economy.

While insisting Kenyan football was on the right path, he described that path as "fraught with thorny pathways and dark alleys". According to Pulse Sports, he warned that allowing "mediocrity, hate, bloated egos and greed" back into football administration would be an injustice to Kenyans. He closed with the Kiswahili line "Hiyo nayo hatuwezi kubali kamwe" (we can never accept that).

Row at Kandanda House

The remarks come against the backdrop of a long-running dispute between Hussein and a section of the FKF National Executive Committee led by vice-president McDonald Mariga. The two camps have traded blame over several issues affecting the game, and earlier this month Mariga told The Standard he does not draw a salary from the federation as the leadership row deepened. Pulse Sports reports that Hussein has made it clear he remains in charge and will not let others derail his plans.

Young Stars into Tier A

On the pitch in Baku, Kenya's U-15 boys gave the federation something to celebrate. They beat Chad 3-2 on Monday to finish top of Group Z unbeaten, after opening with a 5-1 win over Panama and drawing 2-2 with Niger.

Against Chad, captain Innocent Media scored nine seconds after kick-off, Mozzart Sport reported. Duncan Muyah doubled the lead in the 15th minute, and after Chad pulled one back, Silas Juma restored the two-goal cushion in the 27th minute. Chad scored again with about ten minutes left, but Kenya held on.

Finishing first sends Kenya into Tier A, the top performance tier made up of the 32 group winners. Teams in Tier A enter a round-of-32 bracket in which a defeat does not end their tournament; they keep playing classification matches until the final day. The Tier A final is set for Friday, 30 October, and the festival closes on Saturday, 31 October.

A global first

The eight-a-side tournament has drawn teams from about 190 of FIFA's member associations and is expected to stage close to 1,000 matches across the complex's 10 pitches, which are configured to host 20 games at a time. A girls' edition is planned for 2027, and both competitions are expected to become annual events from 2028.

Hussein said the event gives young players "invaluable international exposure" against different football cultures.

Photos: The Star / Mozzart Sport