Uganda to host CECAFA zonal schools championship in December

KAMPALA - Uganda will host the 2026 CAF African Schools Football Championship CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers from December 6–9, 2025, after the tournament was moved from Ethiopia.

Jean Sseninde, the interim executive director of CECAFA, confirmed the decision and thanked Uganda for accepting to host the regional event.

“We are happy to announce that the regional qualifiers for the CECAFA Zone will now be hosted by Uganda from December 6–9, 2025.

“This is a very important competition to have the youngsters compete at zonal level for boys and girls, and we thank Uganda for accepting to host the tournament,” she added.

The matches will take place at St Mary’s Stadium, Kitende, and FUFA Stadium, Kadiba, attracting ten boys’ teams and eight girls’ teams from across the CECAFA region.

Uganda will be represented by St Mary’s Kitende in the boys’ category and Kawempe Muslim Secondary School in the girls’ category. Both schools will be hoping to qualify for the continental finals for the fourth consecutive time.

Last year, Uganda’s St Noa Girls won gold at the CECAFA qualifiers before falling to Ghana in the continental final. St Mary’s Kitende also finished second behind Tanzania, earning qualification to the African finals in Accra.

In the boys’ tournament, Uganda’s St Mary’s Kitende will compete in Group A alongside Burundi, Djibouti, Kenya, and South Sudan. Group B will include Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Somalia, and Zanzibar.

For the girls’ tournament, Kawempe Muslim SS joins Kenya, Burundi, and Rwanda in Group A, while Tanzania, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Djibouti make up Group B.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals. Winners will contest the final, while the losing sides will play for bronze.

The champions in each category will receive US$100,000, the runners-up $75,000, and the third-placed teams $50,000. The prize money will support development projects at the winning schools.

CAF will also run several capacity-building programmes during the event. These include the Young Reporters Programme, Young Referee Programme, Young Medical Officers Programme, CAF D Licence Coaching Course, and CAF Safeguarding Workshops.

“These programmes are meant to empower young people beyond the pitch,” she concluded.

Since the CAF African Schools Football Championship was launched in 2022 by CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe, CECAFA teams have performed strongly.

The first edition in Durban (2023) was won by Guinea’s CS Ben Sekou Sylla (boys) and Tanzania’s Fountain Gate School (girls).

The second edition in Zanzibar (2024) saw Tanzania retain the boys’ title, while South Africa won the girls’ crown.

At the third edition in Ghana (2025), Tanzania again won the boys’ trophy, while Ghana beat Uganda in the girls’ final.