Shabana have tightened security ahead of their highly anticipated Football Kenya Federation Premier League clash with giants Gor Mahia at Gusii Stadium in Kisii on Sunday.
The fifth meeting between the two clubs, who boast a massive following, will kick off at 2pm.
The venue was the scene of crowd violence during a league meeting between the two teams last season that left more than 70 fans injured.
At the same time, Gor have questioned the decision of the home club to allocate them only 1, 500 regular tickets.
According to the match programme released by Shabana, a total of 12,000 tickets have been printed, comprising 7,500 regular, 4,100 VIP, and 300 VVIP.
The regular tickets are priced at Sh300, VIP Sh1, 000 and VVIP 2, 000.
Shabana have allocated 6,500 regular tickets for the fans.
However, Gor Secretary General Nick Arum questioned the decision to allocate Gor just 1,500 tickets saying: “Shabana fans alone have been filling Gusii to capacity. Now playing Gor in Nyanza, where we enjoy a massive following, what do you expect? With only 1,500 regular tickets for Gor, what will happen to the thousand fans who will come and miss them? Will you tell them to go home? It is a recipe for danger, but what do you do if they insist that the match takes place there?”
Fans take cover at Gusii Stadium in Kisii during the FKF Premier League match between Gor Mahia and Shabana FC on May 4, 2025.
Photo credit: Wycliffe Nyaberi | Nation Media Group
Initially, FKF had relocated the match to Moi International Sports Centre (MISC), Kasarani, but moved it back to Gusii following protests by Shabana officials and their vocal fans.
The Shabana fans argued that Gusii was their home ground and they should not be denied its use. They also stated that MISC is Gor’s home venue, thus relocating the match to the 48,000-seater stadium would give K’Ogalo an unfair advantage.
Speaking to Nation Sports yesterday, Shabana Secretary General Elizaphan Kerama said the club has rolled out an inclusive and enhanced security plan involving Gor and FKF.
Unlike in the previous encounter, where only one platoon of the General Service Unit (GSU) was deployed, Kerama said that three GSU platoons will be on the ground on Sunday.
Several Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) officers, 10 traffic police officers, and at least 80 stewards from Shabana will also be deployed.
“We decided to work as a team. Already, we have a committee that is undertaking the process. We have done quite a good number of reviews that are from the structural, the arrangement, and the ticketing part,” said Kerama.
Unheeded warnings preceded chaotic scenes at Gor, Shabana match
“We (Gor) told them (Shabana) that it cannot be a one-man show. We have had a Zoom meeting, and we will have another joint meeting tomorrow (Saturday),” said Arum, although he remained dissatisfied with Shabana’s insistence that the match take place at Gusii.
Fans take cover at Gusii Stadium in Kisii during the FKF Premier League match between Gor Mahia and Shabana FC on May 4, 2025.
Photo credit: Wycliffe Nyaberi | Nation Media Group
The league encounter between the two clubs on May 4 last year witnessed violent skirmishes between the two sets of fans over seating areas.
Some Shabana’s stewards were armed with batons, raising questions of why they were armed, if they were even permitted to be armed, and to protect whom from whom.
Kerama assured that no steward would be armed. He said that all security personnel are expected to perform their duties according to the law.
“Nothing is going to be seen like any form of ammunition. If you are a steward, there is specific guidance to follow. It is the same case for the police. During our discussions, it was very clear that everybody must carry out their duties according to the law,” said Kearama, adding that measures are in place to identify trouble makers during the match and have them punished individually.
Gor fans will buy tickets at Nyanchwa Junction near Gospel Embassy, Nyanchwa Bridge, while their Shabana counterparts will purchase theirs at Huduma Center Grounds in Kisii. VIP and VVIP tickets will be sold at Hama Junction near AIC Academy.
A buffer zone will be maintained between G11 and G12 to separate the two sets of fans. Shabana fans have been allocated the regular stands at G1 to G10, while Gor’s supporters with regular tickets will sit at G12 and G13.
Since their promotion to the FKF-PL in 2023, Shabana have never beaten Gor in four encounters, losing thrice with identical 1-0 scorelines and drawing (1-1) once.
