The Ministry of Sports rewards each of the Harambee Junior Starlets after a historic win

The Ministry of Sports has honoured each of the Harambee Junior Starlets players with Sh300,000 after they created history by qualifying for the FIFA Under-17 World Cup for the first time ever following a 5-0 thrashing of Burundi.

The Junior Starlets defeated the Burundians 2-0 on Sunday at the Ulinzi Sports Complex in Nairobi, winning the final qualification tie with a 5-0 aggregate score and securing a spot in the Dominican Republic in October.

CS Ababu Namwamba hosted the team for dinner and congratulated their performance, saying this proves the bottom-up model policy of the Talanta Hela Initiative to great success.

“This is mind-blowing. It is not every day that you witness the writing of history. We have never been close to any Kenyan team playing at the World Cup. These girls have written history, and I am proud of them,” the CS said.

Football Kenya Federation president Nick Mwendwa was ecstatic at the qualifying, saying it shows that their investment in young development is finally beginning to pay off.

“I have always said our women’s football is the greatest area of growth in Kenyan football. We are proud of the team. We have a fantastic team; they know how to win, and we are delighted at the support we have seen. This is the product of continuous and consistent  work,” Mwendwa said after the game.

The Junior Starlets’ qualification trip was outstanding, with the team leaving an impression without conceding a goal and scoring eight goals in four matches. They join Nigeria and Zambia as the three African countries competing in the 2024 U17 World Cup in the Dominican Republic.

Starlets is one of three African countries, together with Nigeria and Zambia, that will compete in the 2024 U17 World Cup in the Dominican Republic.

The Kenyan girls qualified without conceding a goal and scored eight goals in four games.

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Football Kenya Federation (FKF) boss Nick Mwendwa was also elated with the qualification, saying it showed their investment in youth development was starting to bear fruit.

“I have always said that our women’s football is the single biggest area of growth in Kenyan football. We are proud of the team. We have a fantastic team; they know how to win, and we are delighted with the support that we have seen. This is the product of continuous, consistent work,” Mwendwa said after the game.