AFC Leopards gaffer nominated for FKF Premier League coach of the month award
By Joel Masibo, February 6, 2026AFC Leopards head coach Fred Ambani has been nominated for the Football Kenya Federation Premier League January Coach of the Month Award.
In January 2026, Fred Ambani guided Ingwe to four wins and registered only one defeat in five matches. The tactician also witnessed his side score nine goals and concede only two in the process.
Following the good run, AFC Leopards are firmly in the 2025/26 FKF Premier League season title with 34 points in 18 outings. The team, chasing their first league crown since 1998, are trailing league leaders Gor Mahia, who are at the summit of the table with 40 points in 19 matches.
Fred Ambani will have to come face-to-face with Gor Mahia’s head coach Charles Akonnor, Murang’a SEAL’s Osborne Monday and Bandari’s Bernard Mwalala for the coveted monthly award.
Impending crisis
Meanwhile, amid the good run of results at AFC Leopards with Fred Ambai in charge, the club’s chairman, Boniface Ambani, has warned that the impending closure of Nyayo National Stadium and Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) renovations will leave the club without a place to call home, challenging Ingwe and their arch rivals to have their own homes for matches.
The two local football bigwigs boast of massive followings, numbers that Ambani urges both AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia to utilise. With the two iconic stadiums set to shut down in early March, Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards, founded in 1968 and 1964, respectively, face an uncertain period that could disrupt their matchday routines and overall operations, as they have been utilising the two facilities to stage their home matches in the Football Kenya Federation Premier League and other FKF competitions.
”The government is moving close to shutting down Nyayo National Stadium and Kasarani for AFCON. That leaves the two clubs without a place to call their own home. It’s just simple in life, when you have your own thatched house, nobody will tell you what time to wake up or sleep. You’ll do what you want without any worry,” Amabni said.
Ambani likened the situation to living without a house, stressing that owning a home provides freedom, independence, and stability.