Benni McCarthy Reveals Why He Snubbed South Africa And Europe For Harambee Stars Role

Harambee Stars coach Benni McCarthy has opened up on why he chose the Kenyan national football team role over a potential return to South Africa or Europe.

McCarthy, whose last role before the Harambee Stars job was as a first-team coach at Manchester United, had been heavily linked with a return to South Africa, Europe, and the MLS.

However, McCarthy chose Harambee Stars despite these links such as with South African giants Kaizer Chiefs in 2024 following his departure from Manchester United.

The US was also tipped as his next destination, but Football Kenya Federation unveiled him as the new head coach of the Kenyan national football team.

The South African football legend has now opened up on why he chose Kenya over his home country and a return to a continent where he had so much success.

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"I thought it was a great opportunity. It’s a prosperous country with a very ambitious new federation that just came into power," said McCarthy in a recent interview with CGTN.

"I think the project they sold me was that they want to build a team from now up until 2027, when they host the African Nations Cup," he added.

Kenya is poised to host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, a joint venture with Uganda and Tanzania.

It is this key venture, along with a strong vision to establish a solid foothold in African football, that motivated the former FC Porto player to choose Kenya.

"They want to be able to compete and establish a strong foothold in African football. I thought the opportunity and the foundation of football players they had were really good, and that my team and I could make a change," said McCarthy.

"We could get the team ready for 2027 when they host the Nations Cup, and we could have a strong say in how the tournament unfolds and how far we can take Kenya—somewhere they’ve never been before. That looked like a decent project for my team and me, and that’s why Kenya," he added.

The 2027 continental showpiece is poised to place Kenya as a footballing focal point in Africa.

With the co-hosting, the nation has a good opportunity to establish itself as a footballing powerhouse within the region.

McCarthy will have the 2024 African Nations Championship in August as a precursor to test his squad for the 2027 AFCON.

The Harambee Stars tactician has already overseen two key fixtures for Kenya in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers, which ended in a 3-3 draw against Gambia and a 2-1 loss to Gabon.