The CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup for senior men’s national teams will take place this year in Zanzibar, making a comeback after a four-year absence due to financial challenges.The CECAFA Cup is the oldest football tournament in Africa and is organized by the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations. It was first played in 1926.##NAJAVA_MECA_8142197##The competition is slated for June 29th to July 14th, 2024, and will be hosted at the Amaan Stadium and the Pemba Municipal Stadium. After successfully hosting the CAF Schools Football Championship recently, Zanzibar is warming up to host another competition featuring players from local leagues in the CECAFA region.Teams from the CECAFA Zone and some guest sides will participate in the competition. Uganda are the defending champions, having defeated Eritrea in the 2019 CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup final in Kampala.In an earlier interview, CECAFA Head of PR and Communications Andrew Jackson Oryada emphasized the goal of making the tournament consistent after the hiatus.2026 WCQ: Berahino among five key Burundi players set to miss Kenya game“We agreed that this tournament should be consistent; it is back now. People have been missing it because the Challenge Cup has a different vibe. When it resumes this year, we are hopeful it continues without a break. We want to see many member associations ready to host it because sometimes hosting a competition is a problem,” he told Rwanda’s New Times Sport.Kenya has won the title 21 times, while Uganda remains the most successful side in the competition with 40 titles. Tanzania has won it nine times. The Kenyan national team, Harambee Stars, is currently in Malawi for the World Cup qualifiers against Burundi and the Ivory Coast.Immediately after the qualifiers, they will embark on preparations for the tournament in Zanzibar.“We brought back the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup because of marketing issues. We also appointed six members to make changes for our tournaments,” CECAFA Competitions Committee Chairman Isayas Jira said in an earlier interview.Dandora Stadium to host Mozzart Bet Cup finals
