Before you build
Two Facilities, Side By Side
Community 5-a-side court against Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts, priced in Kisumu on the public-private partnership route. Same county prices, same assumptions, every line set beside its opposite number. We do not name an overall winner, because there is not one: the thing that covers its cost soonest is rarely the thing that reaches the most children.
KSKF Model Output Modelled on each county's own wage, rent and tariff data. Reach is a modelled capacity, not an attendance record: a pitch nobody books reaches nobody.
| Community 5-a-side courtGrassroots | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courtsLeisure and hospitality | Better | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level of the game | Grassroots | Leisure and hospitality | — |
| Pitches | 1 x five | 6 x five | — |
| Land needed | 0.27 ac | 1.65 ac | Community 5-a-side court |
| Build cost | $47,619 | $639,458 | Community 5-a-side court |
| Trading income a year | KSh 4,456,687 | KSh 31,691,997 | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts |
| Running cost a year | KSh 2,895,235 | KSh 22,506,415 | Community 5-a-side court |
| EBITDA a year | KSh 1,561,452 | KSh 9,185,582 | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts |
| Payback period (years) | 3.9 yrs | 9 yrs | Community 5-a-side court |
| Operating surplus, share of build cost | 25.4% | 11.1% | Community 5-a-side court |
| Player visits a year | 26,000 | 156,000 | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts |
| Weekly team slots | 14 | 84 | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts |
| Build cost per player visit | $1.83 | $4.10 | Community 5-a-side court |
| Player visits an acre | 96,296 | 94,545 | Community 5-a-side court |
| Permanent jobs | 1 | 8 | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts |
On cost to build and run
Community 5-a-side court.
An illustrative operating model on stated assumptions: what it costs to build, what it could earn and whether it can cover its own running costs. A facility that cannot cover itself is not a bad facility — it is one that needs public or philanthropic money rather than a commercial operator, and this says which is which. It is research, not a forecast of anyone's return.
On reach
Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts.
Player visits, weekly team slots and what each visit costs to build for. This is the measure a county should care about, and it usually points the other way.
Community 5-a-side court costs $47,619 and carries 26,000 player visits a year; Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts costs $639,458 for 156,000. More money buys more reach here, so the question is whether the extra capital exists.
Across the country
Where Each One Wins
Community 5-a-side court shows the higher surplus share in 41 counties, Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts in 5. The same two facilities across all 47 counties, on operating surplus as a share of build cost. The answer moves with the local wage, rent and demand — which is the whole argument against a single national specification.
| County | Community 5-a-side court surplus share | Branded 5-a-side centre, six courts surplus share | Gap | Wins here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nairobi | 29.6% | 12.8% | 16.8pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Mombasa | 28.6% | 12.4% | 16.2pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Kiambu | 28.1% | 12.2% | 15.9pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Kisii | 26.2% | 11.4% | 14.8pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Kisumu | 25.4% | 11.1% | 14.3pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Kakamega | 24.6% | 10.8% | 13.8pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Nakuru | 24.3% | 10.7% | 13.6pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Uasin Gishu | 24.1% | 10.6% | 13.5pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Bungoma | 24% | 10.6% | 13.4pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Murang'a | 23.6% | 10.4% | 13.2pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Trans Nzoia | 23.2% | 10.2% | 13pts | Community 5-a-side court |
| Machakos | 23.2% | 10.2% | 13pts | Community 5-a-side court |
The twelve counties where the gap is widest. All 47 are in the face-off PDF.
Your shortlist
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