Aboud Omar Proud to Lead Harambee Stars to Historic Bonuses in His 14-Year Journey

Harambee Stars captain Aboud Omar has taken pride in leading the team to a historic bonus for their exploits in the African Nations Championship (CHAN 2024).

President William Ruto announced a cash incentive scheme to inspire Harambee Stars, offering each player Ksh 1 million for every win and Ksh 500,000 for every draw.

He further promised Ksh 60 million if the team reaches the quarterfinals, Ksh 70 million for a semifinal berth, and an astounding Ksh 600 million should they clinch the title.

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Following their victory over DR Congo and a draw against Angola, the players had already pocketed government rewards. Their triumph against Morocco has now pushed each player’s total earnings to Ksh 2.5 million.

President Ruto further stated that if Harambee Stars win their match against Zambia on Sunday, August 17, they will walk away with Ksh 2.5 million.

The Kenya Police FC defender revealed that the last time they ever received a huge amount of money was during the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, but that money was nowhere near what the players featuring in CHAN have earned so far.

The South African football legend recently made it clear one player will never feature in his plans, citing serious integrity concerns.

Aboud Omar pointed out that he is also working around the clock to motivate the young players, having been in the game for more than 10 years.

Omar revealed that once CHAN is over, he is confident many players will have the opportunity to play for international clubs.

“I’m also the first captain to oversee players getting a lot of money. For the last 14 years, when I was in the national team and we have never received such a huge bonus. The last time we got such an amount of money was during the AFCON, where we received Ksh 1.5 million,” Aboud Omar said after Harambee Stars secured a 1-0 victory over Morocco.

Victor Wanyama partly disagrees with Serah Teshna’s view that cash rewards are the main driver of Harambee Stars’ CHAN 2024 success.

“I’m proud, the boys are really trying, and we are here to motivate them because I’ve been there and I believe that at the end of this tournament, many players will get opportunities.”

Aboud Omar added that ahead of Harambee Stars match against Morocco, many fans were not confident in what they would achieve. He noted that fans bet against them, but they emerged victorious.

Omar explained that the power of fans is what drove them to make an impact, considering they were 10 players in two of their matches, against Angola and Morocco.

“Many people never thought we would be top of the table, and everyone was saying it would be Morocco…we don’t have a problem with that, we want them to come and see the magic,” Aboud Omar said.

“I want to appreciate the fans for coming to support us, because in the last two games, we were only 10 on the pitch, but it felt like we had 14 because of the fans.”

Harambee Stars are now gearing up for their final group stage match against Zambia on Sunday, August 17, looking to secure a dominant victory and cruise to the quarterfinal.