Engin Firat: Why Harambee Stars coach is here to stay

Kenyans have started calls for Harambee Stars coach Engin Firat to be dismissed over poor performances but there are a number of factors that make his sacking difficult.

Harambee Stars fans have slammed coach Engin Firat following his team's drab draw against Zimbabwe in their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Friday.

Firat was criticised for his team selection and approach, which saw him fail to field a recognised striker in the starting XI, opting for a defensive display against the Warriors, which yielded a goalless draw.

It left fans disappointed with a number of them calling for the tactician's sacking but the supporters will have to contend with him for a longer time.

This is because Firat still has a contract until early 2026, having signed a three-year extension at the start of last year.

However, that is not even the major stumbling block as contracts can be terminated whenever either or both parties are not satisfied.

The main issue is that Kenya has struggled to meet the financial commitments in the Turkish tactician's contract.

Firat is believed to be on a monthly salary of Ksh1.5 million (Ksh18 million annually) but he is rarely paid. The tactician has on two occasions said he has gone for months without pay.

"Man, you know that I am not being paid. Why do you ask?" Firat told the media in May this year. "It's not a problem. It's only five months. But look, guys, this is the reason why the players and I are so close."

"We have so many problems, and we don’t go out to cry. We don’t cry. We fight for our country. We are close together, and we are not going to share our problems outside."

This revelation came after Firat had also said in September 2023 that he had not been paid for eight months.

Former Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba had promised to ensure Firat is paid by June this year but Pulse Sports understands the tactician is yet to receive his full dues.

That effectively makes it problematic to sack Firat now as all his pending dues and a severance package would have to be paid before a parting of ways.

Failure to do so and Firat will file an appeal at FIFA over unfair dismissal which would land Kenya into more problems.

Kenya has already had its fingers burnt twice over a similar issue as in March 2020, the country faced a FIFA ban over delay to pay Ksh109 million awarded to former coach Adel Amrouche by the Court for Arbitration of Sport over wrongful dismissal.

Amrouche had been sacked 18 months into a five-year contract in 2014 and having also been owed millions in unpaid salaries, he sought legal redress at the international body.

In October 2019, Amrouche’s successor Bobby Williamson was also awarded Ksh55 million by the Labour Court in Kenya for wrongful dismissal after his contract had been terminated in 2016.

Williamson, who at the time of his sacking not been paid for one year, said he opted for local courts to protect innocent Kenyan players from a FIFA ban, but there are no guarantees that Firat will be as forgiving, if a similar scenario befalls him.