SDT nullifies FKF's decision on abandoned Nairobi United - Gor Mahia match
Reading Time: 2min | Fri. 06.03.26. | 19:30
The deadline for a fresh determination is set for Friday, 13 March
The Sports Dispute Tribunal on Friday, 6 March nullified the decision by the FKF Leagues and Competitions Committee (LLC) to uphold a 1-1 draw in the abandoned Nairobi United versus Gor Mahia match played late last year.
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In a Friday, 6 March ruling, the tribunal ordered a fresh and fair hearing into the case, which has now been referred back to the Leagues and Competitions Committee, and with a deadline for determination set for Friday, 13 March.
The ruling, which also poked holes in the legitimacy of FKF’s Disciplinary Committee, came after Nairobi United challenged a decision by FKF’s LLC that ruled that the Sunday, 21 December match that was done away with in the 58th minute was abandoned due to force majeure, thereby upholding a scoreline that stood at the time.
In addition, FKF referred matters relating to misconduct during the match to the FKF Disciplinary Committee for further action where applicable.
In the said match at Dandora Stadium, crowd trouble and safety concerns in the stands forced referee Brooke Phillip to call time on a game that had been deadlocked at 1-1, with goals coming from Ovella Ochieng and Ebenezer Adukwaw.
It would take till 30 January for FKF to make their ruling on the match, a decision that was quickly challenged by Nairobi United representative Nelson Odaya, who swore an affidavit with the SDT on Thursday, 5 February under a certificate of urgency, prompting the tribunal to intervene.
In its ruling, the tribunal then certified the matter as urgent, and issued a temporary injunction, halting both the implementation of FKF’s earlier decision, and the related disciplinary proceedings.
In its final determination on Friday, the SDT, in its move to annul FKF’s earlier decision, directed the LLC to determine the fresh case under the Rules and Regulations Governing Kenyan Football (2019), and not those from 2025, which were used to determine the initial ruling, but were not in effect, nor agreed upon by clubs at the beginning of the 2025-2026 FKF Premier League season.
The LLC was further given five working days to deliver on its outcome, with the deadline set for next Friday.
Under the 2019 statutes, clubs bear significant responsibility for crowd behaviour and stadium safety.
In its other judgement, SDT ruled that the FKF Disciplinary Committee, in its current form, stood as an illegal body, stripping away its rights to adjudicate on matters, as it had not been ratified by the FKF General Assembly.
