You will not regret, Tenga tells CAF

Tanzanian Sports Council (BMT) chairman, Leodgar Tenga has said that the Confederation of African Football (Caf) will not regret handing Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania the rights to host the 2027 African Nations Cup (Afcon).

On Wednesday, Caf President Patrice Motsepe announced in Cairo that a joint bid by the three East Africans to host the continental event has succeeded.

The three East African nations will host the continental show piece after being selected ahead of heavy weights Algeria, Senegal, Egypt and Botswana respectively.

Speaking in Cairo after the momentous announcement, the former Caf Committee member said he had confidence the Pamoja Bid was won fairly and will host a very successful tournament that will leave a big mark in Africa and globally.

“I want to say that CAF will not regret the decision to award Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania the rights to host Afcon 2027.  I want to thank our President Samia Suluhu, William Ruto of Kenya and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda for supporting our bid and the work starts now,” said Tenga, a former Tanzania international who once served as the chairman of the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (Cecafa).

“CAF delegates were very happy with our presentations and we also showed them how the three countries are endowed with rich culture and tourist attractions sites.

“Apart from football, they will have other things to enjoy in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania since our citizens are very hospitable,” he added.

Tenga urged the governments of the three countries to invest a lot in the necessary infrastructure so they are not stripped of the bid, an incident which if happens can spell doom for football in the entire region.

Tanzania successfully hosted the 2019 Afcon Under-17 tournament.

Additional reporting from Mwanaspoti