Chapa Dimba format changed for Coastal teams

Organisers of the Safaricom Chapa Dimba were forced into restructuring the competition format at the Coastal region following an overwhelming registration of teams from Mombasa County.

A total of 40 teams from Mombasa alone enlisted to participate, with the figure meeting the threshold initially earmarked for the entire coastal region thus locking out Kwale, Taita Taveta, Kilifi and Tana River counties until a week later.

The Coast Regional Championship Coordinator Michael Karanja comfirmed this Saturda’s Chapa Dimba will be held exclusively in Mombasa with matches being played across Kisauni, Likoni, Changamwe and Mvita sub-counties.

“The total number of participating teams from Mombasa alone is equivalent to the number of teams from the entire North Coast Branch which posed a logistical challenge for us. We have decided to cover Mombasa this weekend after which we shall move to the other counties,” Karanja said.

The matches will be played on Group Stages format at sub-county level with table-toppers progressing to a knockout round.

Once-in-a-lifetime

The newly built Uwanja wa Mbuzi Grounds and KPA Mbaraki Sports Club have been marked out as venues likely to host the Coast regional finals.

The Safaricon Chapa Dimba is a partnership between Football Kenya Federation and premier mobile phone service provider Safaricom Limited which aims to transform the lives of young people by giving them a platform to showcase their talent and an opportunity to earn from their talent.

The KSh100 million grassroots football tournament was launched on June this year with Harambee Stars captain and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Victor Wanyama unveiled as the competition brand ambassador.

This nine-month-long competition dubbed “Chapa Dimba” is contested in Nairobi, Eastern, Western, Nyanza, Rift Valley, Coast, Central and North Eastern regions by aspiring male and female talents aged between 16 and 20 years.

Winning clubs will each be awarded KSh1 million in prize money with players attached to these two teams awarded a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of flying to England to visit Wanyama at Spurs in North London, UK.