Two weeks ago, Kenya submitted a formal bid to the Confederation of African Football headquarters in Cairo to host the 2017 African Cup of Nations finals. The news was met with the pessimism that has become synonymous with the country’s football. Other countries that submitted bids for the tournament were Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

The last time Kenya hosted a major international sports event was the All African Games in 1987; the 60,000-seater Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani (now the Safaricom Stadium Kasarani) was built for that purpose. In 1996, Kenya made an attempt to host the Afcon finals but there was no government support.

Kenya is seeking to become the first country in the region to host the competition. If the event is successful, it could give Kenya’s football a much needed boost.

In the bid document submitted in Cairo last week, Kenya states that it already meets most of the conditions to host the event.

“The only major renovation work will be on two stadiums. Kenya has already started working on these and will be ready in early 2016,” states the bid document, which was prepared on Kenya’s behalf by French football consultancy firm INSYS International.

But can Kenya win the bid and successfully host the event? And what is there for the country to gain apart from Africa’s top football players visiting Kenya?

Sports Commissioner Gordon Oluoch said hosting the tournament will be a large financial investment. The four stadiums earmarked to host the competition are the Safaricom Stadium Kasarani, Nyayo National Stadium (both in Nairobi), the Kipchoge Keino Stadium in Eldoret and the Mombasa County Stadium.

“Hosting the competition will give us a lot of mileage as a country and it is an opportunity we do not want to let go.
“By playing host to Africa, we will gain from sports tourism. It will also be in line with our goal of improving sports infrastructure in the country,” Oluoch said.

According to the bid document, the total construction work of the Kipchoge Keino is projected to cost $20 million; it will accommodate 20,000 spectators. A similar amount could be used to upgrade Mombasa County Stadium into a 20,000-seater stadium.

The government has allocated an estimated $1 million for the ongoing renovation of Kipchoge Keino Stadium, $580,000 for the Mombasa County Stadium and $180,000 for Kisumu Stadium.  Additional funds are expected from both the central and county governments to bolster the renovations.

Though the government is yet to give its budgetary estimates for preparing and hosting the biennial event, Angola and Gabon spent between $150 million and $300 million to host the event. When Angola hosted the tournament in 2010, it spent $140 million to build four new stadiums.

Apart from match venues, Kenya should have between 16 and 20 training grounds with floodlights for the use of the participating teams.

The grounds cited in the document are Barclays Training Centre, Moi Sports Centre, Strathmore University and Brookhouse School in Nairobi, Lorna Kiplagat Academy, Hill Secondary School and Wareng High School in Eldoret, and Mbaraki and Mombasa Sports clubs in Mombasa.

The Sports Stadia Management Board — the body mandated with managing Kasarani, Nyayo and the soon to be completed Kipchoge Keino Stadium — says renovation work should be complete by December.

“We anticipate finishing the work by December. What remains is to lay the synthetic track, and the sprucing up of the terraces,” said the SSBM public relations officer Rakki Asman.

Kenya Tourism Board managing director Muriithi Ndegwa said hosting the event will boost the country’s brand equity and tourism in general.

“It will raise the country’s profile going by the marketing that comes with it. The same way Brazil hosted the 2014 World Cup and benefited, we will also expect a boom in tourism numbers,” said Ndegwa.