Mama Ida Odinga reveals why she supports Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards

Mama Ida Odinga, the widow to the late Prime Minister Raila Odinga, is not associated much with football but she has made her feelings known on the team she supports.

While ‘Baba’ as her husband was affectionately known, was an ardent football fan, Ida has not been prominent in football stadiums.

However, she insists she is also a follower of the beautiful game. Occasionally, Ida would make an appearance at the stadium alongside her husband, who supported Gor Mahia, Harambee Stars and English Premier League champions Arsenal.

In fact, Raila was a long-serving patron of Gor Mahia, a club he did not just support but also rescued a number of times.

“Those days when we were at the university, Raila was playing for Luo Union and we used to go and watch them play at the City Stadium. He started off there,” Ida told Citizen TV in a recent interview about how her late husband’s love for football started.

Raila’s love for the game looks to have rubbed off on his wife as Ida admits she also follows Arsenal. However, when it comes to local football teams, her love is divided between Kenya’s two most popular teams; Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards.

It is an unusual thing as in Kenya, you either support Gor Mahia or AFC Leopards. The two clubs also draw a huge following from the Luo (Gor Mahia) and Luhya (AFC Leopards) communities and it is on the backdrop that Ida finds herself having to split her loyalties.

“I support Gor Mahia and Arsenal but when AFC Leopards is playing, I support them because I am half Luhya and half Luo,” she added.

“My mother was a Luhya from Khwisero and my father was a Luo from Gem. So, I give them 50-50 support,” she explained.

That admission puts Mama Ida in a difficult position during the Mashemeji Derby when Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards clash. It is still not known where she leans when the arch rivals face off.