KAMPALA, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Sudan's Al Merriekh will miss the 2018 Council for East and Central African Football Association (CECAFA) Club Championship scheduled to take place on June 29-July 13 in Dar el Salaam, Tanzania.
Nicholas Musonyo, General Secretary of the CECAFA told Xinhua on Tuesday that Al Merriekh will not attend the event because they have just started the national league.
He said that the other 10 CECAFA members will send teams for the event.
Defending champions Azam FC of Tanzania who won the title in 2016 have been placed in Group A that has JKU FC (Zanzibar), Kator FC (South Sudan) and Uganda's representatives who will either be KCCA FC or Vipers SC.
"We might not take part in the CECAFA Kagame Club Championships because it could interfere with our schedule of traveling to Tunisia to face Esperance in the CAF Champions League," KCCA FC's Public Relations Officer, Moses Mwanje Magero told Xinhua.
In case KCCA FC, who won the Ugandan League title in the 2016/2017 season, opt out, then the current League champions Vipers SC will take part.
Tanzania will be represented by three teams: Azam FC, Young Africans FC and current League champions Simba SC.
Kenya League champions Gor Mahia FC, Lydia Ludic FC (Burundi), Rayon Sport FC (Rwanda), Ports FC (Djibouti), St. George (Ethiopia) and Somalia's Dakadaha FC are the other teams that will take part.
Following is a list of the groupings:
Group A: Azam FC (Tanzania), KCCA FC/Vipers SC (Uganda), JKU FC (Zanzibar), Kator FC (South Sudan).
Group B: Rayon Sport (Rwanda), Gor Mahia (Kenya), Lydis Ludic FC (Burundi), Ports FC (Djibouti).
Group C: Young Africans (Tanzania), Simba SC (Tanzania), St. George (Ethiopia), Dakadaha FC (Somalia).