Kenyan referees Yiembe, Kamau among officials listed for CAF matches

FIFA assistant referee Stephen Yiembe will be on the sidelines at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup campaign, joining a pool of 117 match officials selected by the world governing body to officiate the tournament that runs from 14th June to 13th July 2025 in the USA.

Yiembe, who is the only one from the East African region under the CECAFA umbrella selected for the tournament, takes with him a ton of experience from high-profile matches he has been a part of, including his most recent high-profile outing when he was part of the officiating entourage that oversaw Senegal's 2-0 win against Togo in the CAF World Cup Qualifiers.

Yiembe was among the referees selected to officiate at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics and is among the assistant referees listed by FIFA in their latest officiating names ahead of the summer tournament. 

At the same time, Yiembe will join two other Kenyan match officials to officiate the upcoming Confederation of African Football (CAF) Champions League semi-final tie as Mamelodi Sundowns take on Al Ahly on Saturday, 19th April 2025, at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa. 

The first leg tie of the semis will see the Kenyans, Stephen Yiembe and Gilbert Cheruiyot, deputize Somalian central referee Omar Artan. At the same time, Peter Kamaku, also from Kenya, will serve as the fourth official.

The VAR technology will be overseen by Gabon's Pierre Ghislain Atcho and his assistant, Ghanaian Daniel Laryea.

The high-stakes match pits the South against the North's giants as South Africa's Sundowns take on Egypt's Al Ahly in an exciting encounter that offers a center stage for the Kenyans to showcase their officiating expertise on the continental stage. 

The Sundowners, who sit atop the South African Premier League, will be hoping to replicate their form against the Red Devils, who sit third in the log placement in the Saturday encounter, whose reverse fixture will be played in Egypt's Cairo International Stadium on April 25th, 2025.