Nairobi, Nov 1 (IANS): The Council of East and Central Africa Football Association (Cecafa) announced that Ethiopia had pulled out as hosts of regional football showpiece, Senior Challenge Cup.

Cecafa general secretary, Nicholas Musonye, confirmed here Friday that Sudan will now host the tournament slated for Nov 24 to Dec 9 after Ethiopia withdrew to concentrate on their push to qualify for the 2015 Afcon finals and to wrap up their domestic top flight league, reports Xinhua.

"I want to assure our members the tournament will run smoothly since Sudan are interested in hosting the event so we will be announcing the official communication soon," Musonye added.

Ethiopia were to host the tournament for the first time since 2006 and won the staging rights after assuring Cecafa they had secured sponsors whilst Sudan will hold the event for the first time in 11 years if given a final nod.

Kenya's 'Harambee Stars' are the defending champions after edging out the 'Falcons' of Sudan 2-0 in last year's showpiece here.