By: Emmanuel Patrick Laku | Sports Hunter South Sudan
The 2025 CAF Women’s Champions League CECAFA Qualifiers was the fifth edition of the regional women’s club football championship organised by the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA).
The tournament brought together the leading women’s clubs from East and Central Africa competing for the region’s single qualification slot for the 2025 CAF Women’s Champions League final tournament.
The fifth edition was hosted by Kenya and held in the capital city Nairobi from 4 to 16 September 2025.
Nine clubs representing nine CECAFA member associations participated in the competition, including South Sudan champions Yei Joint Stars FC, who made history by appearing in their fifth consecutive edition of the qualifiers.
The tournament ended with Tanzania’s JKT Queens FC successfully defending their regional title after defeating Rwanda’s Rayon Sports Women in the final to claim their second CECAFA Women’s Champions League Qualifiers championship.
Tournament Details
Competition: CAF Women’s Champions League CECAFA Qualifiers
Edition: 5th edition
Host Country: Kenya 🇰🇪
Host City: Nairobi
Dates: 4–16 September 2025
Teams: 9 clubs from 9 associations
Venues: 2
Champion: JKT Queens FC (Tanzania)
Runner-up: Rayon Sports Women (Rwanda)
Third Place: Kenya Police Bullets FC (Kenya)
Fourth Place: Kampala Queens FC (Uganda)
Tournament Statistics
Matches Played: 13
Goals Scored: 30
Average Goals Per Match: 2.31
Participating Teams
Team Association Appearance Previous Best Performance
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia FC Ethiopia 5th Champions (2024)
Denden SC Eritrea 1st Debut
Top Girls Academy FC Burundi 1st Debut
Kenya Police Bullets FC Kenya 2nd Runners-up (2024)
Rayon Sports Women Rwanda 2nd Group Stage (2024)
Yei Joint Stars FC South Sudan 5th Group Stage (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
JKT Queens FC Tanzania 2nd Champions (2023)
Kampala Queens FC Uganda 2nd Group Stage (2023)
JKU Princess FC Zanzibar 1st Debut
South Sudan Representatives: Yei Joint Stars FC 🇸🇸
South Sudan champions Yei Joint Stars FC returned for their fifth consecutive appearance in the CAF Women’s Champions League CECAFA Qualifiers.
The club represented South Sudan in:
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Their five straight appearances made Yei Joint Stars the most consistent South Sudanese women’s club at the regional level.
The South Sudanese champions were drawn into Group C alongside:
🇹🇿 JKT Queens FC — Tanzania
🇿🇦 JKU Princess FC — Zanzibar
Venues
The tournament was hosted in Nairobi, Kenya.
Stadium City
Ulinzi Complex Nairobi
Nyayo Stadium Nairobi
Match Officials
Referees
Suad Mohamed — Djibouti
Lillian Nakitto — Uganda
Leticia Ndagire — Rwanda
Asha Said — Tanzania
Ruth Aturo — Uganda
Fatuma Hassan — Ethiopia
Assistant Referees
Halima Adan — Somalia
Jackline Nduku — Kenya
Amina Mohamed — Eritrea
Neema Mushi — Tanzania
Grace Nanyondo — Uganda
Rahma Osman — Sudan
Draw Ceremony
The official draw for the 2025 CAF Women’s Champions League CECAFA Qualifiers was held on 26 August 2025 in Nairobi, Kenya.
For the first time, the competition format changed, with nine teams divided into three groups of three teams.
Only the three group winners and the best runners-up advanced to the semi-finals.
Group A
🇰🇪 Kenya Police Bullets FC
🇪🇷 Denden SC
🇺🇬 Kampala Queens FC
Group B
🇪🇹 Commercial Bank of Ethiopia FC
🇧🇮 Top Girls Academy FC
🇷🇼 Rayon Sports Women
Group C
🇹🇿 JKT Queens FC
🇸🇸 Yei Joint Stars FC
🇿🇦 JKU Princess FC
