Five-time CAF Champions League winners, TP Mazembe, have clarified their position regarding participation in the 2024 CECAFA Kagame Cup, scheduled to take place from July 6 to 22 in Tanzania and Zanzibar.

Despite initial reports, the Congolese giants have stated they have not received any official invitation from the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA).

Mazembe were initially named as one of three guest teams set to participate in the tournament alongside Malawi’s Nyasa Big Bullets and Zambia’s Red Arrows FC.

However, a statement from the club revealed a different reality. “The management of TP Mazembe learned from the media about the club’s participation in the CECAFA Kagame Cup 2024,” the club’s statement read as done by the Guardian of Tanzania.

“TPM informs the club’s large family that it has not yet received any official invitation for its participation in the CECAFA Kagame Cup tournament, in which it has participated in the past.

“The statement further clarified the club’s current status at the Dr Congo giants. “Management indicates that the players are currently on leave and that training will resume on July 15, 2024, at 3:00 p.m. at the TP Mazembe Stadium,” it added.

Tanzania’s Azam FC, two-time CECAFA Kagame Cup winners, have Already opted out of the competition to focus on their pre-season preparations ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.