Harambee Starlets players celebrate a goal against the Gambia in a first leg match of the final round of 2026 Women Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers at Nyayo National Stadium on October 24, 2025.
Kenya women’s football team coach, Beldine Odemba, faces the biggest test of her career this week when Harambee Starlets host top-ranked opponents in the 2026 Fifa Series matches in Nairobi.
Kenya’s opponents in the tournament include Australia, ranked 119 places higher, and India, ranked 67 places higher.
Coach Odemba has warned her players that they will face “good teams” in the competition.
The Fifa Series is a series of friendly matches that will be contested by national teams from different confederations, who don’t normally have the opportunity to play each other. The objective is to allow more international football interaction, making a concrete contribution to global football development. The men’s edition ran from March 25 to 31, while the women’s series will be contested from April 9 to 18.
In the women’s series, Kenya, which is ranked 134th, will host 2026 Asian Women’s Cup runners-up Australia, who are ranked 15th globally, India who are placed 67th, and Malawi, who are ranked 153rd globally. The matches will be played at Nyayo National Stadium.
Harambee Starlets players celebrate a goal against the Gambia in a first leg match of the final round of 2026 Women Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers at Nyayo National Stadium on October 24, 2025.
Australia, who lost 1-0 to Japan in the final of the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, play Malawi on Saturday from 2pm at Nyayo National Stadium. The match will be followed by a fixture between Kenya and India from 6pm at the same venue.
Losers will clash four days later in the third-place play-off from 2pm, while the winners will play in the final from 6pm.
The Australian team is expected to arrive in Nairobi in batches starting from Tuesday at 5:50pm. India are scheduled to land in Nairobi earlier on Tuesday from 1:30 pm, while Malawi are expected on Wednesday at 4pm.
Coach Odemba is optimistic that the matches will help her team prepare better for the postponed 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon).
“It is exciting that we are playing the Fifa Series at home against good teams. Teams like Malawi are also trying to get ready for Wafcon as they qualified for the first time,” Odemba said on Monday after training at Kasarani Annex Stadium.
Harambee Starlets players entered residential training camp last Wednesday at Stadion Hotel in Nairobi, and have been training at Kasarani Annex Stadium. Of the 31 players in coach Odemba’s provisional squad, 21 home-based players have reported to camp.
Football Kenya Federation Women Premier League (FKF-WPL) champions Kenya Police Bullets have contributed seven players to the squad, while Ulinzi Starlets (five), Vihiga Queens (three) have also contributed players. Both Trans Nzoia Starlets and Kayole Starlets have each contributed two players to the squad, while Kibera Soccer Women and Soccer Assassins are each represented by a player.
The remaining 10 foreign-based players are expected to arrive in camp starting Tuesday morning.
“We have all the home-based players in camp, and we are now looking forward to having the international players in camp from Tuesday morning,” Odemba noted.
The former Kenya Police Bullets coach added that the friendlies present a good challenge to her team, which is undergoing a transition.
“The friendlies are important for us to ensure that the team is gelling well. We shall move forward as a unit so that every member of the squad understands where we are doing, and review progress before the postponed Wafcon. Postponement of the tournament was a blessing in disguise, it has allowed us time play more friendlies before Wafcon,” Odemba said on Monday evening.
Last month, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced that the 16th edition of Wafcon, which was scheduled to be held from March 17 to April 3, was been postponed. The new tournament dates are July 25 to August 16.
The inaugural Fifa Series 2026 women’s tournament features 16 national teams across four groups, hosted by Kenya, Brazil, Côte d’Ivoire, and Thailand. ENDS
