Ethiopia will face defending champions Uganda in the semi final stage at the ongoing TotalEnergies CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) CECAFA Zonal qualifiers.

The hosts sealed their place unbeaten when they silenced Kenya 1-0 in their last group match played at the Abebe Bikila Stadium on Wednesday.

In-form Dawit Kasaw netted the lone goal after 65 minutes to ensure Ethiopia picked their third win in the qualifiers. The earlier Group A match saw South Sudan edge Rwanda 2-1.

Enzo Bagabo, Rwanda’s assistant captain told Cecafaonline that although they lost all four matches, they have gained a lot of exposure playing in a competitive tournament. “We go back to Rwanda with a lot of lessons learnt,” added Bagabo.

Uganda who lifted the title last year finished second of Group B and will now face Ethiopia on November 30^th. Uganda Cubs humbled Djibouti 6-0 in their last Group B match played at the Dire Dawa Stadium today.

The Cubs took a 2-0 first half lead with Thomas Ogema and Ukasha Jemba scoring. Brian Olwa picked a second half brace, while Arnold Kayemba and Fahad Ismail also got their names on the score sheet.

In an earlier match Sudan collected their second win of the qualifiers seeing off Burundi 1-0 with Alamin Ahmed Osman scoring the goal.

Tanzania who are the only team in the tournament with a 100% winning record will face Kenya in the first semi-final, while Ethiopia face Uganda in the second semi-final at the Abebe Bikila Stadium on November 30^th.

The champion, runner-up and third placed team after the final day on December 2^nd will represent the CECAFA Zone at the AFCON U-17 next year.

Kenya and Uganda have qualified for the semi finals stage at the ongoing TotalEnegies CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) CECAFA qualifiers.

The Kenyan team advanced to the knock out stage after beating South Sudan 2-0 in a Group A match played at the Abebe Bikila Stadium on Monday.

Derrick Wanyonzi gave Kenya the lead after 12 minutes, while Trevor Nasasiro put the icing on the cake one minute to full time.

The South Sudan team led by skipper Panom Juo and substitute Micheal Wani created some decesnt scoring opportunities, but failed to take them.

The win sent Kenya to 7 points ahead of their last match against hosts Ethiopia on Wednesday to decide who tops Group A.

“I am very happy that although we did not play at our best, we did the job and came out victorious to qualify for the semi-finals before playing the last match,” said Kenya’s head coach Willaim Lukalia Muluya.

In an earlier match Somalia humbled Rwanda 3-0 with Mohamud Osman netting a brace, while Abdigafar Abdulahi also got his name on the score sheet.

At the Dire Dawa Stadium Group B table leaders Tanzania silenced Burundi 5-0 with Saddam Hamis netting a hat-trick. Idrisa Kilendemo and Ismail Likungilo scored the other two goals to shut out Burundi’s hopes of challenging for a second place finish to give Uganda the opportunity to qualify before they face Djibouti in the last match.

Sudan also collected their first win of the tournament seeing off Djibouti 3-1 in the second Group B match played. Elhassan Hilmi Hassan scored a brace, while Sami Hassan Idris scored the opening goal. Zahar Asmar converted a second half penalty for Djibouti, their first goal of the tournament in three matches played.

The four last group matches will be played on Wednesday. Hosts Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are the four teams that have already qualified for the semi-final stage to be played on November 30^th. The play-off for third place and the final are slated for December 2^nd.

Two teams Tanzania and hosts Ethiopia have qualified for the semi-final stage at the ongoing TotalEnergies U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) CECAFA qualifiers.

Tanzania secured their place after stopping Uganda 2-1 in a Group B match played at the Dire Dawa Stadium on Friday night.

Fahad Ismail gave Uganda the lead from the spot after 15 minutes. But Didmas Athanasi leveled for Tanzania eleven minutes later. Soann Shabani added a second half goal to ensure Tanzania collected maximum points.

The win sent Tanzania to nine points before they face Burundi in the last group match, while Uganda remained second with six points.

In another Group B match Burundi recorded their first win seeing off Djibouti 1-0. Sharif Irabaruta scored the lone goal. The two teams were each reduced to 10-men.

In Addis Ababa at the Abebe Bikila Stadium, Ethiopia failed to hold to their 3-1 lead, to draw 3-3 against a determined Somalia side.

Somalia took the lead through Nur Andirashid Omar after 36 minutes to silence the home fans. But Dawit Kassaw leveled matters with a well time header after 40 minutes.

The home side returned a very hungry side before they got a penalty after 52 minutes. Dawit Kassaw Yirdaw stepped and converted to take his tally to six goals in the tournament.

Somalia did not loose hope and continued to attack in numbers with substitute Mohamud Osman holding the midfield well. Abenezer Alemayehu netted Ethiopia’s third goal after 85 minutes, but Somalia pulled one back two minutes later through Abdirashid Omar.

In the second minute of added time Somalia’s skipper Anas Mohammed leveled matters to ensure they collected a third staright draw in the tournament.

Ethiopia’s head coach Benjamin Ziemer admitted that his team had lost control of the game.” These are young boys and it’s a learning curve. We now have a few days before we play Kenya,” added Ziemer.

In an earlier Group A match Kenya recovered from a goal down to stop Rwanda 2-1. Olivier Nshimiyimana gave Rwanda the lead after 37 minutes, but two second half goals by Nicholas Ochola and Trevor Nasasiro were enough to hand Kenya their first win.

Action continues on Monday with two matches in Addis Ababa and two matches in Dire Dawa. The winner, runner-up and Third placed teams will represent CECAFA at the AFCON U-17 2026.

The ten teams taking part at ongoing Zonal CECAFA qualifiers of the TotalEnergies AFCON U-17 have applauded the organisers of the Safeguarding Workshop held in Ethiopia.

Under the supervision of CECAFA Head of Administration and Safeguarding Officer, Veronica Lusichi the (Kenya) the workshops were held in Dire Dawa on Tuesday, and on Thursday in Addis Ababa.

The final Workshop held at the Jupiter International Hotel in Addis Ababa today was marked by a series of interractive safeguarding sessions and an extensive explanation of the existing FIFA safeguarding policy framework designed to protect players and officials from various forms of abuse in Football.

Participants also received an overview of what is Safeguarding, its importance in football as well as FIFA safeguarding essentials that incorporate knowledge and insights into creating a safe and supportive environment for all participants.

Temesgen Kebede Tadesse, Ethiopia’s U-17 goalkeeper said he was happy to learn a lot about safeguarding in Football. “This has been a good workshop because we have learnt a lot,” added Tadesse.

Alain Kirasa, Rwanda’s assistant coach also appreciated the initiative by CECAFA to have the Workshop because the players and officials have benefited a lot.

South Sudan’s captain Panom Juo said such Workshops are very productive because players and officials get to learn several things of how to stay safe in Football.

Lusichi thanked all the participants of the ten teams for the active participation.

The ten teams taking part in the AFCON U-17 Zonal qualifiers include; Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Djibouti, South Sudan, Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda and Somalia.