IN bid of holding a ‘successful championship’, guest teams Al Ahly of Egypt and Liberty Professionals of Ghana have been locked out of this year’s Cecafa/Kagame Cup despite being invited earlier.

Cecafa President Leodegar Tenga said on Wednesday in Dar es Salaam that guest teams were excluded after realizing that organizers could face a difficult time financially.

"Having them in the championship could have been great, but we have no option but to exclude them, therefore only the teams from member states will be taking part,” he told Tanzanian media.
Meanwhile, the championship which was due to be held in Sudan has been shifted to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania from June 21-July 5.

The Cecafa secretary general Nicholas Musonye said in a statement that they decided to shift the venue for the regional club championship from Khartoum, Sudan over security concerns.
"The tournament was shifted because of the ongoing political crisis in the country,” added Musonye.

APR who are defending champions and winners of the 2011/12 league and Etincelles will be Rwanda’s flag bearer in the tournament.

Tanzania will be represented by Simba Sports Club, the former Vodacom Premier League champions while Zanzibar Ocean View from the Isles will also be making their debut in the championship.

Other 2010 regional league champions who will take part in the tournament include: Uganda’s Bunnamwaya, Kenya’s Ulinzi, Ethiopia’s St. George, El-Merreikh, Al Hilal from Sudan, Burundi’s Vital’O, Port of Djibouti, Red Sea of Eritrea and Somalia’s Elman.

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