The 2026/27 Kenyan Premier League season  kick off hangs in the balance after the High Court in Milimani clarified that the status quo prevailing before the Sports Disputes Tribunal’s August 10 ruling must be maintained.

Football Kenya Federation had moved to court seeking clarification of the existing state of affairs order issued on August 25, after the Sports Disputes Tribunal (SDT) delivered its ruling on Sharks’ challenge to their relegation to the second tier National Super league (NSL).

Kariobangi Sharks were relegated under the 2025 regulations after finished 16th in the 18-team Premier League last season. The 2025 regulations provided for three automatic relegations and three direct promotions from the National Super League.

Sharks challenged the decision before the Sports Disputes Tribunal, arguing that the 2019 regulations should apply, with only the bottom two Premier League teams being automatically relegated, while the team finishing 16th would play a promotion-relegation playoff against the third-placed NSL side.

Under to the 2019 regulations Sharks who finished at position 16 were supposed to play Mombasa United, who finished third in the NSL, in a two-legged play offs, with the winner grabbing the 18th KPL spot. The standoff comes with less than one year to the CAF African Cup of Nations 2027 tournament set to be co-hosted by Kenya Uganda and Tanzania.

According to Justice Janet Mulwa’s ruling, the position that existed before the August 10 Tribunal ruling remains in place pending further directions on September 21. Since the 2026/27 league had not started when the Tribunal delivered its ruling, maintaining the pre-August 10 position means the league cannot kick off while the existing status quo is maintained.

The KPL round one matches were initially set for 29th August 2026 kick off but were postponed to August 31 to September 2, 2026, before being cancelled again to allow league sponsors and stake holder to deliberate and provide direction. 

Meanwhile, FKF president Hussein Mohammed will hold an urgent meeting with KPL clubs on Wednesday 2nd September 2026 (tomorrow) with the main agenda being the way forward as fans footballers and the stake holders wait patiently for the 2026/27 KPL campaign.