Welcome to Round 16 of the FKF Women Premier League, where the only thing more consistent than the talent is the absolute lack of funding. We are told the league is “taking center stage,” but when you look at the log, it looks more like a bankruptcy hearing. Kisped Queens are sitting at the bottom with negative two points, closely followed by Kisumu Allstarlets at negative one. Only in Kenya can you show up to work and somehow owe your boss progress. These negative points aren’t because of bad luck; they are the price of walkovers - a polite term for being too broke to travel to a match.

The “Nyanza Derby” between Gideon Starlets and Kisumu Allstarlets at Mamboleo Stadium is being hyped as a battle for survival. Let’s call it what it is: a scrap for crumbs in the relegation zone. It’s a “Nyanza affair” in the red zone, but nobody is celebrating. When teams are docked points because they can’t afford a bus to the stadium, the league isn’t testing their skill; it’s testing their ability to survive on vibes and prayers. Gideon Starlets might have beaten Allstarlets in the first leg, but in this economy, the only real winner is the person selling water at the gate.

Then we have Madira Soccer Assassins hosting Kisped Queens at Nyang’ori Boys High School. Read that again. A “Premier League” match being played at a high school ground. We are masquerading as a professional footballing nation while our top-tier athletes are changing in classrooms and playing on pitches that look like they’ve survived a drought and a stampede. Madira is trying to “disentangle” themselves from relegation, but when you’re playing against a team that literally has less than zero points, is it even a contest or just a communal mourning of the sport?

At the top of the table, Kenya Police Bullets are sitting pretty with 31 points. It’s no surprise that the teams backed by the state - Police, Ulinzi, and the well-oiled Vihiga Queens - are the ones dominating. In this country, if you don’t have a uniform or a governor’s deep pockets behind you, you’re basically playing for exposure and a headache. The gap between the “haves” and the “have-nots” in this league is wider than the potholes on Mombasa Road, and the FKF seems perfectly fine with it as long as the fixtures are met.

This entire setup reminds me of the circus we see in our national leadership. We focus on the “struggle” of these girls as if it’s an inspiring underdog story, rather than a systemic failure of those in charge of the beautiful game. Like I’ve said before in The 10k Circus: Why We’re Still Catching Small Fry While the Sharks Swim Free, we love to watch the small players fight for survival while the sharks in suits at the federation offices continue to swim in diverted funds and broken promises. Enjoy the matches, but don’t let the “passion” blind you to the poverty.