Uganda has secured the hosting rights for the 2027 Confederation of African Volleyball (CAVB) Zone V Club Championship, with the regional competition scheduled to take place at Hoima City Stadium from January 23 to 31.
The Uganda Volleyball Federation announced that the nine-day event will bring together clubs from the 12 countries that make up Zone V, with teams competing in the men's and women's categories.
The member countries are Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan. Their clubs will converge on Hoima as they seek regional honours in one of the zone's major club competitions.
The hosting rights place Uganda at the centre of the regional volleyball calendar at the start of 2027 and give Hoima the opportunity to welcome teams, officials and supporters from across the zone.
Rwanda's APR Volleyball Club will head into the championship as defending champions in both categories, having claimed the men's and women's titles at the 2025 edition in Kampala.
APR's women defeated Kenya Pipeline 3-1 in the final, recovering after losing the opening set to secure the trophy. The men's side also won by a 3-1 margin, beating fellow Rwandan club Rwanda National Police in an all-Rwandan final.
The double victory gave APR both regional titles and set up the Rwandan club as the team to beat when the competition returns. Their title defence in Hoima will be one of the main storylines, with clubs from the other Zone V countries seeking to prevent another double.
Kenya Pipeline's appearance in the 2025 women's final also underlined the competition's importance to Kenyan clubs, which will have another opportunity to challenge for the regional title in the 2027 tournament. However, the participating clubs for the next edition have not yet been announced.
The championship's move to Hoima will also take the competition beyond Kampala, where Uganda hosted the 2025 edition at Lugogo Indoor Stadium. The previous tournament attracted teams from across the zone and ended with APR winning both categories.
With the dates and venue announced, attention will now turn to preparations for the event and the confirmation of participating clubs. Uganda will be responsible for staging the competition, while APR will seek to retain the two titles when the teams meet in Hoima.
