Moi Stadium Kisumu faces two-year-closure in Ksh.90M facelift plan

The Kisumu County Government has announced plans to close the Moi Stadium to pave way for renovations.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, the county spokesman Alloice Ager said the stadium will be closed in June 2019.

According to him, the closure will be for a period of two years to allow for renovation at a cost of Ksh.90million.

Ager said the closure would enable the county to make major refurbishments that will include new terraces and changing rooms.

He also said that the county would carry out a groundbreaking ceremony in June before the renovations begin.

The Moi Stadium has been host to major Kenya Premier League matches.

Its closure could see the matches transferred to the Jomo Kenyatta Sports Ground.

Last year, Kisumu County CEC Sports and Tourism Achie Alai indicated that the renovation that was announced in 2012 would be through a public-private partnership.

A report in the Daily Nation said she planned to engage the East African Breweries Limited to come onboard.

Moi Stadium that was initially known as Kisumu Municipal Stadium has had a myriad of challenges.

In 2010, the stadium was in a sorry state; broken windows, collapsed fence, overgrown lawn in the pitch, sprawling dumpsite in the periphery with cows feeding from it, rusted iron roofing and a dilapidated spectator area with broken wood and only stones left to sit on.

However, three years later, it was announced that there were grand plans for the rehabilitation of Moi Stadium.

Football fans who reside in the lakeside town seemed to have been offered the munch-anticipated news that they expected would restore their favourite spot to its former glory.

The Municipal Council of Kisumu even requested that any planned political rallies or crusades set to be held at the stadium be put off.

It turned out that only an artificial turf costing Ksh.Sh53 million would be laid and having rallies would wear it out too fast.

At the time, the FKF Nyanza NEC representative was Tom Alila.

Alila received the Fifa appointed contractor–Greenfields Sports Turf System–to execute the artificial turf laying process.

But officials criticised the move and questioned why an expensive ‘carpet’ was being installed yet no work done on other dilapidated sections of the stadium.

In 2018, Kisumu played host to international football sensation Ronaldinho and once again, rekindled hopes for the upgrade of the much beloved Moi Stadium in Kisumu.

He did not stay long at the Moi Stadium; only showed off some of his famous moves as he juggled the ball, surrounded by county officials.

Fans were a disappointed lot when he failed to mingle with them and their stadium remained in its sorry state.

Also Read: Football legend Ronaldinho coming to Kenya