NAIROBI, Kenya, May 23- The first half of the current Kenyan Premier League (KPL) season netted Sh18.151m in gate collections representing double the figure realised at the same stage last season.
According to data released by Ticket Masters on Wednesday, attendances grew from 88,104 fans compared to the 66,352 recorded in the 2011 campaign representing a 33 percent increase.
Just like last season, Gor Mahia’s Green Army still lead the charts with over 60 percent of the collections accruing to K’Ogalo despite a difficult start to the campaign that has seen them in the bottom half of the table.
“AFC Leopards’ contribution to the improvement is at 19 percent However, this is only a representation of the attendance at their away matches as the ticketing for their home matches is handled by a different supplier.
“Attendance for matches by Ulinzi Stars, Sofapaka FC, Tusker FC, Rangers FC, KCB FC, City Stars and select matches by Mathare United attracted the remaining 20 percent of stadium attendance,” Ticket Masters General Manager Martin Nkaari added.
Nkaari pointed out that the increase in price for terrace tickets at both Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards from Sh100 to Sh200 from the third round of this season’s matches remains the largest contributor to the significant soar in revenue collection.
“The attendance was recorded in 42 matches Ticket Masters was managing ticketing in the league as compared to last year’s 36 for the period under review. This represents an average collection of Sh432,233 for the period and an average attendance of 2,097,” Nkaari disclosed.
He added that these numbers was approximately 40 percent of total tickets printed at the time and only 20 percent of match venue capacity implying that KPL was still operating at low attendance rates.
The analysis revealed that outside games by either K’Ogalo or Ingwe, the only other game that attracted the most attendance is the clash between league champion Tusker and Sofapaka that had only 72 fans paying to watch the high profile fixture.
According to the report, the March 18 league derby between Gor and AFC pulled the highest number of paying supporters pegged at 20,409 that is 81 percent of the Nyayo National Stadium capacity.
“If they maintain a good run, figures will surge but if they struggle on the pitch, numbers will not reach projections,” said Nkaari in relation to the expected rise in revenue during the second leg.
