Tanzania punched its ticket to the 2027 CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday, beating Burundi 2-0 in the CECAFA Under-20 semifinal to reach the regional final.
Juma Abushiri broke the deadlock in the 16th minute at Uhuru Stadium, and Faraji Kayanda made it 2-0 in the 33rd. The hosts weathered a second-half push from Burundi to close out the win and end their opponent’s unbeaten run in the tournament.
It’s Tanzania’s third trip to the U-20 AFCON finals.
“It was a very tough game. We knew that Burundi is a team that never gives up,” coach Mario Rivera Campesino said. He said his side had chances to add to the lead but leaned on its defense to close it out.
Tanzania rolled through the group stage without conceding, routing Rwanda 3-0 and Ethiopia 4-0. Burundi was just as sharp before Tuesday, going 4-0 over South Sudan and 2-0 over Kenya behind captain Amini Nshimirimana, who scored all four of those goals.
Tanzania now meets Sudan in Saturday’s CECAFA final, after Sudan held off Uganda 3-2 in the second semifinal. Sudan and Tanzania take CECAFA’s two berths in Ghana regardless of that result — Burundi’s run ends here, and the Burundians face Uganda for third place.
Tanzania has now qualified for the U-20 AFCON three times, following appearances in 2021 and 2025.
