Kenya pull out of CECAFA tournament

Kenya have pulled out of the Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) U15 championship set to kick off on Saturday at the Njeru Technical Centre in Uganda. The competition will run from November 4–16, 2023.

The Kenyan junior side were the runners-up the last time the tournament was held in 2019, and they have opted out despite expectations that they would take part in the tournament. Uganda are the defending champions, having hammered Kenya 4-0 in the final four years ago.

CECAFA General Secretary Auka Gecheo has confirmed that they have been informed by Kenya that they will not be entering a team for this year’s championship. Other teams that will not be taking part in the tournament are Sudan, Burundi, and 2019 hosts Eritrea.

Eight teams that will take part in the tournament have been pooled into two groups. Defending champions Uganda are in Pool A alongside Ethiopia, Djibouti, and South Sudan. Pool A has Tanzania, Zanzibar, Somalia, and Rwanda.

According to Auka, the U15 championship will serve as part of preparations for the AFCON U17 CECAFA Zone qualifiers set for next year.

"We expect to have a very competitive competition, and we are using the competition to prepare our youngsters ahead of the AFCON U-17 Zonal qualifiers next year,” the former SuperSport East Africa General Manager told CECAFA Media.

Kenya is expected to host the AFCON Under-15 [Pan-African Schools Football] and the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) Under-18 Championship later this month.

CECAFA U15 pools

Group A: Uganda, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and South Sudan

Group B: Tanzania, Zanzibar, Somalia, and Rwanda

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