KAMPALA, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Council for East and Central African Football Associations (Cecafa) has invited Malawi as a guest side for the regional 2011 Tusker Senior Challenge Cup slated for Nov. 25 to Dec. 10 in Dar es salaam, Tanzania.

"We had invited Cote d'Ivoire and Zambia, but because of the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) regulations forbidding teams that have qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations from taking part in any other competition after the draws have been made, we decided to withdraw the invitations and instead invite Malawi as the guest side," said Nicholas Musonye, the Cecefa Secretary General.

In the draws made on Wednesday, Uganda who have won the regional trophy more than any other country have been grouped alongside Zanzibar, Burundi and Eritrea in Group B.

Uganda who last won the trophy when they hosted the tournament in 2009 will however know which team they will face first when the fixtures are released on Friday.

Sudan, which is the only team to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations from the region, will use the tournament to test its team ahead of the tougher continental battle.

It will however have to struggle to come out of a group that has uNPRedictable Kenya, Eritrea and guest side Malawi.