The History and Identity of East African Football within the African Context

Abstract

The East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania have carved a niche of perpetual failure to qualify for major football competitions at continental and global levels despite the sport being fervently supported in the respective countries. Association football is the world’s most popular form of sport, being played in every nation without exception (FIFA, 2013a; Murray, 1998; Reilly, 1994,1996). The sport is played by millions of people, and has billions of fans and supporters all over the world including 208 nations and members of the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA). The game is rated Africa’s best sport with 53 countries affiliated to Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA) (CAF, 2013; Rintaugu et al., 2012). In an effort directed towards development of football in Africa, several management and administrative structures of the sport have been set up, with the umbrella governing body being the CAF. In addition, regional governing bodies have been established to oversee the growth and development of the sport in specific geographical regions of Africa. One such organization is the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA), which has organized annual football tournaments for the countries of the Eastern and Central Africa region since 1973. However, each of the countries has a national federation that manages the sport. Due to the popularity of football, most African countries have invested heavily in the sport so as to bring about success.