Rwanda and Tanzania have been confirmed as hosts for several regional tournaments scheduled on the 2026 calendar of the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA).
The announcement was made on Tuesday by Jean Sseninde, who revealed the member associations that secured the rights to stage the competitions.
Tanzania will host the season opening CECAFA U17 Girls Championship, scheduled to run from May 30 to June 14, 2026. The country will also stage the TotalEnergies CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations CECAFA qualifiers from August 22 to September 6.
Rwanda, which last hosted a CECAFA competition five years ago, will begin its hosting duties with the CECAFA Kagame Cup from July 18 to August 9. The club tournament is expected to help teams in the region prepare for the 2026 to 2027 CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup campaigns.
Rwanda will also host three additional competitions. These include the CAF African Schools Football Championship CECAFA qualifiers scheduled for July 22 to 25, the CAF Women’s Champions League CECAFA qualifiers set for August 22 to September 6, and the U17 Africa Cup of Nations CECAFA qualifiers planned for October 10 to 25.
“We are very excited and thank all the different Member Associations who applied to host the different CECAFA competitions,” said Sseninde.
CECAFA also revealed it is engaging sponsors and partners in an effort to secure funding that could allow the inclusion of the CECAFA Beach Soccer Championship and the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup in the 2026 calendar.
