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| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Rwanda |
| Dates | 8–22 December |
| Teams | 11 (from CECAFA confederations) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Ethiopia (2nd title) |
| Runners-up |  Kenya |
| Third place |  Rwanda A |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 23 |
| Goals scored | 69 (3 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Alex Isabirye(5 goals) |
The 2001 CECAFA Cup was the 25th edition of the football tournament that involves teams from East and Central Africa. The matches were played in Rwanda, who had last hosted the competition two years before, in 1999.[1] All the matches at the tournament were played from 8 December 2001, when Rwanda beat Somalia, until the 22 December 2001, when both the final and third place play-off were hosted. Prior to the tournament, Sudan withdrew their participation, and as such were suspended from all CECAFA tournaments in the future on an indefinite basis.[2] However, the suspension was lifted in time for the 2002 CECAFA Cup.[3]
Eleven teams entered the tournament, two more than had competed at the previous edition.[4] There were, however, only ten countries competing at the 2001 Cup, as the hosts, Rwanda, entered Rwanda (A) and Rwanda (B). The last time Rwanda had hosted the tournament, in 1999, they had similarly entered two teams: Rwanda (A) finished third, beating Burundi in the third place play-off, and Rwanda (B) won the competition, beating Kenya 3 - 1 in the final.[1] There were similar fortunes at the 2001 CECAFA Cup for Rwanda, as both teams qualified from their groups in second place, the tournament's set-up meaning that the two Rwandan sides could compete in the final against each other if they progressed thus far, as both Ugandan sides did at the 2000 tournament.[4] Although Tanzania and Uganda were both beaten in the quarter-finals by Rwanda in 2001, in the semifinals both Rwanda sides lost to Ethiopia, and Kenya, the side Rwanda (A) had beaten in 1999 to clinch the title. The two Rwanda sides therefore met in the third place play-off in 2001, and after it finished 1 - 1 after normal time, Rwanda (A) won 5 - 3 in a penalty shoot out. The two teams in the final, Kenya and Ethiopia, both won their groups (group A and group C respectively). 2001 was a good year for Ethiopia, not only did they beat Kenya 2 - 1 in the CECAFA Cup final, but their under-20 team qualified for the Argentinian-held 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, this was the first time Ethiopia had qualified for the event.[5] When they did reach the final, Ethiopia had never lost a CECAFA Cup final having played one prior to the occasion, but to this day Ethiopia still have not lost when they have reached the final, an event which has occurred four times.[6] Uganda's 10 - 1 demolition of Djibouti was the biggest winning margin in the CECAFA Cup's history.[6]
- ^ a b "Rwanda, Jul 24-Aug 7, 1999". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
RSSSFwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Tanzania, Nov-Dec, 2002". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
2000RSSSFwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Football in Ethiopia". FIFA. 21 April 2009. Archived from the original on August 17, 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
- ^ a b Sebugwawo, Charles (7 January 2009). "CECAFA: Cup of superstition and records". The Observer. Retrieved 27 July 2014.