Players from eight countries will converge in Nairobi in May for the North East region hockey qualifiers for 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.
The tournament, which will feature both men and women teams will run in Nairobi from May 11-17.
Host Kenya, Burundi, Libya, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Seychelles will play out in the men’s tournament while giants Egypt, Burundi, Libya, Seychelles, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya will square it out on the women’s category.
The new tournament, which leaves Africa divided into three regions – North East, North West, and Central South – is meant to provide more competitions for Africa teams, which have been struggling to join the big leagues in Europe.
The top two teams from each of the three groups will meet in 2021, joined by two best-ranked sides to make eight countries for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Kenya Hockey Union (KHU) secretary, Moses Majiwa, said it is an honor for the country to host the inaugural event.
“This is one of the kind. While it might be a walk in the park for the men’s competition, the ladies will have to rise to the occasion with the presence of Egypt. But all in all, we hope that both teams will qualify for the event,” said the official.
Northwest region has Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo while Botswana, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe form the Central-South region.
