JUBA, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) --- South Sudan has pulled out from this year's Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) Senior Challenge Cup set to kick off in Uganda this Saturday.
The South Sudan Football Association (SSFA) said its men's and women's teams will not take part in the regional competition over financial issues.
Anthony John, SSFA secretary-general, said organizers in Uganda had asked South Sudan to pay about 6.4 million South Sudanese pounds (20,000 U.S. dollars) as registration fees.
"The registration is needed on time to avoid being locked out from the competition and with that, South Sudan will not participate in the competition, both men's and women's national teams," John said in a statement posted on the SSFA official Facebook page.
The Bright Stars were initially placed in Group B with Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and neighboring Sudan.
Nine teams are now left in the tournament set to start from Dec. 7 to 19 after similar moves by Ethiopia and DRC.
