Home Sports Simba SC Opts Out Cecafa Kagame Cup

Simba SC Opts Out Cecafa Kagame Cup

by Bonnie Mugabe
6:50 pm

Rwandans will miss seeing in action the Simba SC duo of Haruna Niyonzima and Meddie Kagere as the Tanzanian champions have withdrawn from the Cecafa Kagame Cup Tournament

The Tanzanian giants Simba SC have opted out of the 2019 CECAFA Kagame Cup to concentrate on preparations of their new 2019/20 Tanzania Premier League.

The regional CECAFA Kagame Cup tournament will be held in Kigali-Rwanda from from July 7-21, 2019 and will run concurrently with the 32nd edition Afcon, which will be held in Egypt.

Simba SC’s withdrawal from the regional club tournament was announced today in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. In their statement, the club cited the short period between the conclusion of last season and the start of the 2019/20 domestic season as the main reason for their withdrawal.

“Simba Sc would like to inform stakeholders as well as our fans that the club will not be participating in the upcoming Cecafa Kagame Cup,” the club said in a statement.

“The main reason why we will not be taking part in the tournament is the short period of time we will have for pre-season ahead of the start of the next season.”

Zesco United of Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo duo AS Vita and Motema Pembe have already confirmed their participation.

Rwanda, being the hosts, will be represented by Rayon Sports and APR FC. Ugandan Premier League champions KCCA FC will represent their country in the regional competition.

The tournament brings teams from Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Sudan, Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania and Zanzibar together.

The winner of the annual tournament will walk home with prize money worth U$D 30,000. Clubs which win their domestic leagues in the region book an automatic ticket to the tournament.

Azam of Tanzania is the reigning champions after beating domestic rivals Simba last year in Dar es Salaam.