Kenyans call for help to cover unpaid salaries
Kenya’s rugby sevens squad has launched a public appeal for donations, saying the team have not been paid in months and that players badly need money ahead of several international matches.
Several members of the Kenya squad, known as the Shujaa, shared the fundraiser on social media and described a “desperate situation” in which players were eating into their savings to cover daily costs.
“As some of you may have heard we are now going on our third month without pay,” centre Willy Ambaka posted on Twitter.
“Our lives and those of our loved ones have been greatly strained, even in our persistent effort to give you the desired outcomes on the pitch.”
The appeal comes as Kenya prepare for the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series stop in Dubai this week, and the Cape Town leg the following weekend.
“We are struggling but we have to represent you people at the Dubai and Cape Town legs,” Billy Odhiambo posted on Twitter.
Kenya head coach Damian McGrath discussed his team’s financial woes last month ahead of their departure for the Cathay
Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens where they lost every match.
He said the team were “fighting to find a field we can train in” and lacked a proper gym, let alone the support and amenities enjoyed by their global competitors.
“I knew life wasn’t going to be straightforward here in Kenya but I had no idea that these last couple of months would be so difficult,” said the Englishman, who signed a two-year contract with Kenya in May. “They’re so proud to represent the country, they push themselves hard, and yet they can’t always get to train because they don’t have the money to get here.”
Nairobi senator Edwin Sifuna pledged 100,000 Kenyan shillings (HK$6,400) to the Shujaa and assured help was on the way with the issue being raised in parliament last week.
“We are proud of the work you are doing despite the difficulties,” he said on Twitter.
Kenya have struggled to attract sponsorship and it is not the first time the sevens side has been strapped for cash.
The team publicly protested against unpaid salaries in 2018 during the World Rugby Sevens Series in Paris, prompting the government to withdraw its sponsorship deal for the team.