Yanga ruled out of Kagame Cup?

                                      
                                                       baraka kizuguto  yanga's information officer
Exactly one month ahead of the annual Kagame Cup championship that kicks off in the Rwandan capital, five times winners Young Africans have not confirmed to participate.

Yanga’s information officer Baraka Kizuguto said so far there is no communication between the host nation or the Council of East and Central Africa FootballAssociation (CECAFA) in connection with the tournament.


Kizuguto said it’s very true that Yanga are eligible to participate in the annual regional club championship but poor communication cripples the club’s decision to participate.

Kizuguto said news of Yanga’s participation in the Kagame Cup championship is only available in the media but so far there is no regular communication channeled to his office. However, he neither confirmed nor ruled out Yanga to compete in the tourney.

On the other side of the coin, CECAFA secretary general Nicholas Musonye said Yanga have not confirmed to compete in the championship as other clubs are lined up for the football showpiece.

Musonye named clubs already confirmed to compete in the oldest club championship in the region are Kenya’s Gor Mahia, Rwanda’s APR and Rayon Sport, holders Vital’O and Frandor of Burundi, Telcom, Benadir and Al-Dabr.

Clubs from Ethiopia and Uganda have not yet confirmed to join the fray. 
However, Musonye said the door is not closed and still there is enough time for the rest of the clubs to confirm for the championship.

He also said efforts are underway to extend invitation to other clubs outside the region to feature in the event as guest teams.

Yanga who won their fifth Kagame Cup title in 2012 failed to bid for the hat-trick of titles when the championship was staged in Sudanese war troubled region of Darfur last year. The clearance for Yanga to compete in the championship in Darfur came too late as the club surrendered the title without kicking a ball.

Burundi’s Vital’O cruised to the title for the first time in the history of the tournament and has the task of defending it in Kigali next month.

The Kagame Cup was inaugurated in 1974 when Simba won the title in Dar es Salaam before Yanga emulated their feat the very following year in Zanzibar.
Yanga and Simba have eleven titles dangling between them as the former hold the record for six times haul.