Rwanda to host Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup

The Council for Eastern and Central Africa football Association (Cecafa) has given Rwanda Football Association (Ferwafa) the rights to host the 2015 Cecafa Challenge Cup in November.

Saturday, April 18, 2015

The Council for Eastern and Central Africa football Association (Cecafa) has given Rwanda Football Association (Ferwafa) the rights to host the 2015 Cecafa Challenge Cup in November.

The Cecafa meeting held in the Kenyan capital Nairobi on Friday, decided that this year’s Cecafa Challenge Cup be held in Rwanda while Tanzania will host the Kagame Cup club championship in Dar es Salaam in July.

"It’s confirmed. The Challenge Cup is coming to Rwanda. We want to organize senior Challenge Cup as a preparatory event for CHAN 2016, and the Cecafa Kagame Cup will be hosted by Tanzania,” Cecafa Secretary General Nicholas Musonye told Sunday Sport from Nairobi.

Ferwafa president Vincent Nzamwita, who was in meeting, has confirmed the news, "We held a productive meeting aimed at how possible we can streamline the framework of all Cecafa tournaments.”

Nzamwita added: "We also agreed that all participant teams will have to pay for their own air tickets ; Cecafa will meet costs of their officials, referees and allowances while the hosting nation will take charge of accommodation and local transport for the teams, Cecafa officials as well as prizes for the winners.”

The 2014 Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup didn’t take place after none of the 12 member countries expressed interest in hosting the tournament on short notice. The Kenya Harambee Stars are the defending champions after they defeated the Falcons of Sudan 2-0 in the final two years ago in Nairobi. Uganda is the most successful country with 13 titles.

Rwanda hosted the Cecafa Kagame Cup tournament in 2004, 2007 and 2010 as well as the Senior Challenge Cup in 1999 and won it, and the last time Rwanda hosted the tournament was back in 2005 when they lost 1-0 to Ethiopia in the final.