Yanga's prospects in CAF tournaments rise as foreign teams seek to use Azam Complex

Dar es Salaam. The request by Burundi's Vital'O to use the Azam Complex Stadium in Chamazi, Dar es Salaam, in the Confederation of African Football’s Champions League Competitions has raised the fortunes of the Tanzanian giants Yanga, who have to face Vital’O in the preliminary stages.

Yanga, who are scheduled to play Vital’O in an away match on August 17 this year, will no longer need to travel outside Dar es Salaam to face their opponents in the preliminary round of the CAF Champions League.

Vital’O’s Intwali stadium in Bujumbura, Burundi, missed in the CAF’s list of approved stadiums for the 2004-2005 season released recently, which prompted Vital'O's request to use the Azam Complex.

This means Vital’O will remain in Dar es Salaam to play both matches, similar to last season when they faced ASAS from Djibouti and won with an aggregate score of 7-1.

The second match will see Yanga hosting Vital'O on August 24 at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

The team that wins on aggregate will advance to the next round and play against the winner between CBE of Ethiopia and SC Villa from Uganda to vie for a spot in the group stage.

Azam Complex Stadium Manager, Amir Juma, told MCL that Vital'O is among five teams that have requested to use the stadium for international matches in the 2024-2025 season.

"We received a request from Vital'O and have responded by approving it. The CAF Champions League match against Yanga will be held here at Azam Complex.

Besides Vital'O, other teams that have requested to use the stadium are Rukinzo from Burundi and Horseed from Somalia, both participating in the CAF Confederation Cup," he said.

He mentioned other teams such as AS Arta Solar 7 from Djibouti and Dekadaha from Somalia, which will meet in the CAF Champions League matches.

He noted that, so far, Yanga has not requested to use the stadium.

Amir added that not only Yanga but also other local teams such as Simba and Coastal Union have not requested to use the stadium yet.

According to information from Coastal Union, they might move to the Azam Complex for CAF matches and might use the KMC Stadium in Mwenge, Dar es Salaam, for Premier League matches since the Mkwakwani Stadium in Tanga is under renovation.

"The local team that will use this stadium is Azam FC, who are the hosts, but we have not received requests from other clubs yet. Perhaps we should wait, as clubs like Simba do not start at this stage; maybe later they will bring their requests," said Amir.