Harambee Stars finances: Who pays the team, player allowances and the coach?

On Thursday, September 24, the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports said it had cleared outstanding financial obligations linked to previous Harambee Stars assignments in Zambia, South Africa and Turkey, as well as outstanding technical-bench salaries.

The statement followed a player training boycott and criticism from head coach Benni McCarthy over delayed payments.

But the episode exposes a larger issue - Harambee Stars' finances involve several institutions, rather than one single payer.

So, who pays Harambee Stars?

The Government of Kenya, through the Sports Ministry and the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund (SASDF), is a major source of financing for national teams.

The Sports Act provides the legal framework for government support to sport, while the SASDF finances sporting programmes, national teams, competitions and other sports development activities.

Its 2024/25 annual report lists support for Harambee Stars' AFCON and CHAN qualifiers among the programmes it funded.

During that financial year, the Fund reported collecting Sh15.52 billion and disbursing about Sh14.01 billion to sports.

The Ministry has said government support for national teams includes preparations, travel, accommodation, player allowances and technical support.

FKF, meanwhile, is the country's football governing body and runs the football side of the national team.

What exactly are player allowances?

An allowance is different from a normal club salary.

Harambee Stars players are normally contracted and paid by their professional clubs.

When they report for national-team duty, they can receive camp and assignment allowances for the period they are serving the national team.

In August 2025, FKF President Hussein Mohammed said the government was paying allowances for 24 of the 27 players in the Harambee Stars squad at the time, while FKF covered the balance.

He said FKF had also paid allowances to players and technical staff from its own resources.

That arrangement helps explain why delayed payments can involve both government and the federation.

The precise amount can also change depending on the assignment, approved rates and whether a player is receiving an allowance, a performance bonus or another form of reward.

Who employs the coach, like Benni McCarthy?

This is where the arrangement becomes clearer.

Benni McCarthy was appointed and contracted by Football Kenya Federation, not directly by the Sports Ministry.

FKF unveiled him as Harambee Stars head coach in March 2025 on a contract running to the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.

FKF President Hussein Mohammed subsequently confirmed that FKF would pay McCarthy and his technical team, although the federation declined to publicly disclose the coach's remuneration.

Reports of a Sh8 million monthly salary have circulated, but that figure has not been officially confirmed by FKF.

The current dispute has nevertheless brought the coach's employment arrangements back into focus.

McCarthy said on September 23 that he and members of his foreign technical team had gone months without pay.

The Ministry said on September 24 that outstanding technical-bench salaries connected to previous assignments had been settled.

How is the FKF funded?

FKF has its own revenues and receives support through football's international structures.

FIFA's Forward Programme, for example, provides development funding to member associations.

FIFA's current Kenya profile records funding for national-team support, capacity building and other football projects.

FKF can also receive commercial revenue, sponsorship and competition-related income.

But not every shilling entering football can automatically be treated as money for players.

That became a major issue after Kenya's 2024 CHAN campaign.

FKF officials said CAF prize money is intended primarily for football development, while the federation was working with government to establish clearer rules on how players should benefit from tournament earnings.

The perennial money problem

The latest episode shows that the question is not simply whether Harambee Stars is funded.

It is also about how quickly money moves between government, the federation and the team; which institution is responsible for a particular payment; what rates were approved; and whether payments have completed the required administrative and financial controls.

The Ministry says previous obligations have now been cleared, while FKF has acknowledged that some payments relating to subsequent preparations and allowances have been at different stages of processing.