Confirmed: Gor Mahia to play English club Everton in November
Gor Mahia will travel to England to face Everton in a friendly match at Goodison Park in a match to be played on either November 7 or 8.
This was confirmed on Thursday by the two clubs and their sponsor, giant gaming firm SportPesa who are the match organisers.
“Marco Silva’s Everton side will welcome Kenyan SportPesa Premier League champions Gor Mahia FC at Goodison Park later this year following the African club’s victory in the SportPesa SuperCup final in June,” the English Premier League side explained in a statement.
⚽ | We will face @SportPesa Super Cup winners, @OfficialGMFC, at Goodison Park in November.
More ➡️ https://t.co/bNkWj8zRt5 #EFC pic.twitter.com/QQldnQDIjv
— Everton (@Everton) August 16, 2018
This will mark the Kenyan club’s maiden trip to England and the first time for a Kenyan club to play on English soil.
“This is an amazing opportunity for the players and Kenyan football because it is worth more than anybody could offer money for,” an elated Gor Mahia coach Dylan Kerr said.
“I am very excited. It is an opportunity for Gor Mahia to put Kenya on the global football map by playing one of the most established clubs in the UK,” added Kerr.
SportPesa Chief Executive Ronald Karauri said the tour will give Gor Mahia players a chance to play with the best and sample one of the oldest and best stadiums in the world – Goodison Park.
Everton is one of the most established clubs in the UK, having played the most number of top-flight games in English football.
Gor earned a chance to play Everton after emerging the winner of the second edition of the SportPesa Super Cup held in June in Nakuru, Kenya, featuring eight teams from East Africa.
GOOD EXPOSURE
Karauri said the friendly will be good exposure for Gor Mahia players whom he said have given their best to put Kenya on the global and regional map in matters football.
This will be the second time that Gor Mahia face Everton, after meeting for the first time in Dar es Salaam on July 13, 2017 in a fixture to that ended 2-1 in favour of the Wayne Rooney led side.
Gor also played English Championship side Hull City at a match held in Nairobi on May 13 this year and ended in a goalless draw.
The match was sold out, with the 60,000-seater capacity Moi International stadium, Kasarani filling to capacity for the first time in recent years. Everton commenced their 2018/2019 league campaign with a 2-2 draw at Wolves on Saturday.