AS Kigali will be pushing for glory and seek to encrypt their names in the history books of the CAF Women’s Champions League as the competition begins with Zonal Qualifiers in the coming week.
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The Rwandan champions will begin their campaign in the CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers which will take place at MTN-Omondi Stadium and FUFA Technical Centre, Njeru, Uganda, from August 12-30.
The CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers brings together Champions from East African countries. The eventual winner then gets the sole ticket to represent the region at the final tournament which will this year take place in Cote d’ Ivoire.
AS Kigali finished fourth on their debut zonal qualifiers participation during the 2022/23 season but club head coach Theogenie Mukamusonera insists the ultimate goal now is to qualify to the next stages.
"The ambition this time is different. We managed to finish in the fourth spot, so, with that experience, we are going to fight for the regional title and qualify for the finals in Côte d'Ivoire. That is our ultimate goal,” Mukamusonera told Times Sport.
"We have been preparing for the competition since July, we have done everything on our side as players and coaching staff, the rest is on the management side but we promise to do better than we did in the previous campaign. We have an experienced team and the chemistry is high, so we are confident that this will help us to perform well.”
AS Kigali, who are expected to fly to Kampala for the regional competition, on Wednesday, August 9, found themselves in Group B alongside Tanzanian champions JKT Queens, Vihiga Queens (Kenya) and New Generation (Zanzibar) while Group A comprises home team Kampala Queens (Uganda), C. B. E (Ethiopia), F. A. D. (Djibouti), Buja Queens (Burundi) and Yei Joints (South Sudan).
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The reigning league champions and Peace Cup winners will face Tanzanian side JKT Queens in the opening match slated for on Saturday, August 12.
The CAF Women’s Champions League follows a different format from the men's.
Fewer participants aside, the main competition is played over a period of two weeks in a chosen country. Qualifiers for the continent’s most prestigious club football competition are also held at a single venue which varies for each sub-confederation and is decided as per their qualification format.
Six teams from each of the six CAF sub-confederations namely COSAFA (Southern Africa), CECAFA (East Africa), UNAF (North Africa), UNIFFAC (Central Africa), WAFU Zone A (West Africa), and WAFU Zone B (West Africa) qualify for the finals. They are joined by one team from the host nation and the reigning champions and make up the group stage draw for the finals.
CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers are as follow:
Group A
Kampala Queens (Uganda)
C. B. E (Ethiopia)
F. A. D. (Djibouti)
Buja Queens (Burundi)
Yei Joints (South Sudan)
Group B
JKT Queens (Tanzania)
Vihiga Queens (Kenya)
AS Kigali (Rwanda)
New Generation (Zanzibar)