NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 16 – Football Kenya Federation Premier League clubs, led by Gor Mahia and Tusker FC, are set to be rewarded financially by the world football governing body FIFA for contributing players to the Harambee Stars during the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.
This initiative is part of FIFA’s implementation of an enhanced edition of the FIFA Club Benefits Programme (CBP) for the 2026 edition of its flagship men’s competition.
As per the renewed memorandum of understanding signed by FIFA and the European Club Association (ECA) in March 2023, clubs that release players for the FIFA World Cup 2026 will benefit from Ksh 43.2 billion (USD 355 million) overall.
For the first time since its inception, the CBP distribution principles have been adjusted to allow every club whose players directly feature either in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers or the final tournament to receive a share of the solidarity fund.
This new approach means that any club that releases a player for a FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier will now be directly compensated for said release, irrespective of whether the player plays at the final tournament, an additional step to increase solidarity aimed at providing a fairer and more inclusive redistribution across global club football.
“The enhanced edition of the FIFA Club Benefits Programme for the FIFA World Cup 2026 is going a step further by recognising financially the huge contribution that so many clubs and their players around the world make to the staging of both the qualifiers and the final tournament,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“A record USD 355 million will be distributed to clubs for the release of their players, and this reinforces our solid collaboration with the European Club Association and clubs worldwide as we all look forward to a groundbreaking and globally inclusive edition of the FIFA World Cup next year.”
“At ECA, we are pleased to have collaborated with FIFA to support the development of this innovative new FIFA Club Benefits Programme. It will ensure even more clubs across the world are rewarded for releasing players and highlights exactly how ECA’s Memorandum of Understanding with FIFA supports the ongoing growth of the global club game,” said ECA Chairman Nasser Al-Khelaïfi.
“Clubs play a pivotal role in the success of national team football, and this initiative recognises every element of it, from early development through to release for the most important games. We look forward to continuing to work closely with FIFA and the global football community to ensure we keep driving growth and development of international football.”
Further details on the CBP distribution model will be provided in due course, including the registration process for clubs to submit their application.
The fourth edition of the CBP, which was implemented for the FIFA World Cup 2022, saw Ksh 27 billion (USD 209 million) distributed among 440 clubs from 51 FIFA Member Associations across all six confederations.
