Kotoko to play in Nairobi

The inaugural Tusker Cup tournament to be held in Nairobi later this month has a $50,000 (Sh3.8m) prize money.

Reliable sources said the tournament will be held between July 27 and 30 at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, in Nairobi.

The event will feature Kenya's Tusker FC, Simba from Tanzania and two other teams from Ghana and South Africa. The sources hinted that Asante Kotoko from Ghana may be coming for the event. Kotoko are among the most successful teams in Africa with several victories in the Champions league.

Out of the total prize money, the top team will pocket $25,000 (Sh1.9m) while the runners-up are entitled to $12,000 (Sh950,000).

The third-placed team will pocket $8,000 (Sh608,000) with $5,000 (Sh380,000) going to the side that finishes fourth.

The four teams will be divided into two pools with each team scheduled to play one match in the preliminaries.

The winners of the preliminaries play one another in the final on July 30 to battle for the top prize money. The play-offs will also be on the same day just a few hours before the final match.

The sponsors of the tournament said yesterday that the event will be launched tomorrow in Nairobi.

Tusker Brand manager Billy Ndeche when contacted only confirmed that there will be a team from Ghana and South Africa but declined to give their names.

"I can confirm to you that there are teams coming from South Africa and Ghana," said Ndeche.

The Tusker Cup comes just one month after the Tusker Challenge Cup that was held in Mwanza, Tanzania, and won by Simba of Tanzania.