Kenya 7s recently received a 126 million sponsorship from betting firm Sportpesa, but while the Shujaa players are relieved, their Lionesses counterparts are wondering when their outstanding allowances will be paid.
The Lionesses who have performed admirably in tournaments with limited resources are still awaiting their five-month allowances. Some of the team members that spoke to Scrummage Africa revealed that they haven’t been sorted. The person disclosed that they lack proper insurance to cover for their injuries with some players currently injured and are under no proper care.
“As the Lionesses, we haven’t been paid our five months (allowances), and we feel discriminated against because men now have sponsors, while Lionesses have nothing. We attempted to contact KRU, but they kept making false promises. They had promised to sort us by mid this month but we are past that date,” one of the team members revealed.
“There are no insurances for the injured; right now, one of us has a knee injury and is caring for herself,” the member added.
With a number players depending solely on the sport, some have been locked out of their houses while number are struggling to fend for their kids.
“We’re approaching the festive season, and families are looking at us. Some players have been forced to move and live with others after being locked out due to rent arrears.” another player revealed.
In November, the Union admitted that they owed the national teams, citing that their partners had a challenge remitting sponsorship monies totaling to over KES.14.5Million as of October 2022 due to economic challenges.
