It was a question that left Harambee Starlets coach Beldine Odemba serving some food for thought – how soon will we see a foreign-born Harambee Starlets player? Will Harambee Starlets soon lift with inspiration from the Land Down Under?
At the press conference that preceded Harambee Starlets’ 2-0 win over India’s Blue Tigresses in a 2026 Fifa Women’s Series match played at Nyayo National Stadium on Saturday, Odemba was asked to comment on the curious lack of Kenyan Asian footballers in the country’s men’s and women’s top flight and whether she has encountered any.
“Five years ago, there was an Indian girl whom I was training at a club with some boys. However, I lost contact with her after she travelled to the United States for further studies,” Odemba, who is a certified Fifa coach educator, said.
Odemba’s response to the question triggered an interesting discussion on the subject on X. Some of the views shared by users confirmed that Kenyan Indians were active participants in Kenyan football in the past, before shifting their attention to cricket and hockey.
Harambee Starlets' Tereza Obunyu dribbles past India's Aslam Oraon during Fifa Series International friendly match at Nyayo National Stadium on April 11, 2026.
Photo credit: Chris Omollo | Nation Media Group
“A handful of Goans represented Kenya way back in the 1950s, during British rule, although the bulk of the Indian origin talent usually went to hockey and cricket. Same pattern in East African nations. They are only somewhat more visible in Mauritian football,” Amiān S. (@alnshbdr) posted on X.
“In the early 1980s, there was a team in Division One from Parklands which had Asians. The only problem was that guys used to harass and steal from them on their away games,” posted Manasse Odera (@ManasseOde35846).
Still, Odemba expressed hope that the situation would change in the coming years. “I think it is something that we can look at,” she said.
Odemba further hinted at Harambee Starlets borrowing a leaf from Harambee Stars insofar as increasing the talent pool for Kenyan women’s football is concerned. In recent years, the Football Kenya Federation and the Harambee Stars technical bench have been aggressively tracking foreign footballers of Kenyan descent with the aim of convincing them to change their allegiance to Kenya.
In February this year, FKF vice president McDonald Mariga and Harambee Stars coach Benni McCarthy, together with other FKF officials and members of the Harambee Stars technical bench, pitched camp in the United Kingdom, where they held meetings with English-born footballers like Grimsby Town midfielder Clarke Oduor (on loan from Bradford City), Stockport County midfielder Tyler Onyango (on loan from Everton), Wrexham defender Zak Vyner, and Tranmere Rovers midfielder Zech Obiero (on loan from Leyton Orient).
Harambee Starlets celebrate their goal against India during Fifa Series international friendly at Nyayo National Stadium on April 11, 2026
Photo credit: Chris Omollo | Nation Media Group
“We also need to look at good players in other countries who are of Kenyan descent, like Harambee Stars do. So far, we have not spotted any, but that is an assignment for us,” Odemba said. Australia could soon emerge as one of the countries that Harambee Starlets can scout such talent from.
The Pacific Island nation is bustling with an increasing number of Kenyans who are emigrating there for work and studies. The Australia Bureau of Statistics reported in 2021, following a census conducted that year, that there were 22,348 Kenyan-born individuals residing in Australia. The figure was a 26.6 per cent increase from 2016, when that year’s census recorded 17,652 Kenyan-born individuals living in Australia. That figure is estimated to be approaching 30,000 as Australia prepares to conduct another census on August 11 this year.
“In Australia, of people who were born in Kenya, 62.1 per cent were Australian citizens,” the Australia Bureau of Statistics stated in their 2016 Australia census report.
That percentage represented over 10,000 Kenyan-born individuals who were residing in Australia at the time. With that figure expected to have increased significantly in 2026, Kenya’s diaspora in Australia is now bulging with curiosity on how long it will take before an Australian female footballer of Kenyan descent hits the headlines.
Already, 24-year old William Lenkupae, a Kenyan-born Australian, has featured 12 times for Harambee Stars since his debut against The Gambia in March 2025.
Bruce Kamau, who moved to Australia when he was four years old in 1999, received a Harambee Stars call-up in 2024 but did not play a match. Kamau, who currently plays for Bahraini club Budaiya, had previously played five matches for Australia Under-23 team.
Harambee Starlets celebrate their goal against India during Fifa Series international friendly at Nyayo National Stadium on April 11, 2026
Photo credit: Chris Omollo | Nation Media Group
With Harambee Starlets set to meet Australia’s Matildas in the final of the Fifa Women’s Series 2026 match on Wednesday at Nyayo National Stadium from 5:30 pm, the question of Kenya’s diaspora in Australia producing a player for Harambee Starlets in the near future comes into sharper focus.
During the press conference that preceded the Matildas’ 5-0 win over Malawi’s Scorchers at Nyayo National Stadium on Saturday, Australia women’s coach Joe Montemurro stated the following when asked if there are female footballers of Kenyan descent who have surfaced on the national team’s radar at the moment.
“There is a fantastic connection between Kenya and Australia. There are many Kenyans living a great life in Australia, and we are seeing some come forward in the sports area. Obviously, that is still growing, and we will start to identify athletes that we can assimilate into the Australian landscape and culture from that perspective.”
Going by Odemba’s and Montemurro’s responses, the reality of an Australian-born Harambee Starlets player or a Matilda of Kenyan descent is an actualisation that needs separate exploration by both parties.
