Kenyan crisis looks set to end after talks

NAIROBI, Feb 22 (Reuters) The long-running dispute between FIFA and the Kenyan government over the organisation of the sport in the country appeared to be heading for a peaceful conclusion after successful all-party talks this week.

The Kenya government said on Thursday it would let its troubled federation run the sport independently after a delegation from the African Football Confederation (CAF) visited the east African nation.

CAF officials Amos Adamu from Nigeria and Rwanda's Celestine Musabyimana met government and Kenya Football Federation (KFF) officials with the aim of creating a formula to end the impasse.

''All parties agreed to our conditions, which is to withdraw all pending court cases, no government interference in the running of the KFF, that the status quo (in KFF) remains and that the Cairo Agreement be implemented in toto,'' Adamu told reporters after the four-hour meeting in the Kenyan capital.

FIFA had set a deadline of February 28 to resolve the issue.

Kenya, already temporarily suspended by FIFA, faced a far longer ban over persistent chaos, but that now appears to have been averted.

Kenyan soccer has been in crisis for the past six months, with among other things, two rival domestic leagues competing at the same time.

FIFA banned Kenya last October for not honouring agreements. The government responded by dissolving the federation.

REUTERS PM ND1856