Kenya: Kariobangi Sharks in Hot Soup As Sdt Dismiss Appeal Against Relegation to Nsl
NAIROBI — Kariobangi Sharks’ bid to stop their relegation to the National Super League (NSL) suffered a hammer blow after the Sports Disputes Tribunal (SDT) ruled in the favour of the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Leagues and Competitions Committee.
The slum boys had lodged an appeal against their relegation on the basis of FKF’s promotion and relegation regulations that were enacted last year, arguing that there was no public participation to bring the new rule into being.
Sharks had further advanced that FKF’s National Executive Committee (NEC) should not have ratified the new regulations, arguing that this should have been subjected to a general assembly.
However, the tribunal dismissed the case on the basis that the club did not exhaust all the internal mechanisms at its disposal, as a member of FKF Premier League.
Furthermore, the tribunal ruled that the new regulations were validly ratified by NEC and that the process leading to the same met the threshold of public participation.
The new regulations came into force in September last year, stating that the bottom three teams in the top tier would be demoted to the NSL whereas the top three in the second tier would be promoted.
Consequently, Sofapaka, Bidco United and Sharks were relegated as Migori Youth, 3K FC and Mombasa United earned their berths at the top tier.
The previous regulations, in force since 2019, would have seen Sharks — who finished 16th in the 2025/26 season — play Mombasa United in a relegation/promotion playoff.
However, with another case challenging the new regulation at the High Court in Murang’a, Sharks may yet earn a reprieve and stay afloat in the top tier.
By Capital FM.
