The Victoria Cup is a rugby union tournament contested by the four African nations of , , and . After a seven-year hiatus, the competition was revived following Rugby Africa's cancellation of the Africa Gold Cup in 2019 due to sponsorship loss.
In 2010 and 2011, the Victoria Cup was played as a tri-nations tournament between Kenya, Zimbabwe and Uganda on a double round-robin basis, with the teams playing home-and-away. The competition was discontinued in 2012 after Uganda and Zimbabwe withdrew due to financial difficulties.
The cup is named after Lake Victoria in Kenya and Victoria Falls, which were named in honour the reigning queen Victoria and her great-grandmother.
Champions The Victoria Cup winners and runners-up from the inaugural tri-nations tournament of 2010 onward are listed below:
YearTeams Winner Runner-up Ref 2019 4 2013–2018 Not contested 2012 Cancelled 2011 3 2010 3
Precursor: 1958–2009 The results of matches involving Kenya, Zimbabwe and Uganda from 1958–2009 are listed below:
Date Home Score Visitor Venue Notes 2009-08-29 Kyadondo Grounds, Kampala, Uganda Elgon Cup 2009 Round 2. 2009-08-15 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Elgon Cup 2009 Round 1. 2008-08-16 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Elgon Cup 2008 Round 2. 2008-05-24 Kyadondo Grounds, Kampala, Uganda Elgon Cup 2008 Round 1. 2007-09-26 Mahamasina Municipal Stadium, Antananarivo, Madagascar Semi final of the Africa Cup 2007-08-11 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Elgon Cup 2007 Round 2. 2007-05-26 Kyadondo Grounds, Kampala, Uganda Elgon Cup 2007 Round 1. 2006-08-12 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Elgon Cup 2006 Round 2. 2006-05-13 Kyadondo Grounds, Kampala, Uganda Elgon Cup 2006 Round 1. 2005-08-27 Kampala Confederation of African Rugby (CAR) Championship, Division 1, Pool A 2005-08-20 Kampala RWC Qualifier, Africa, Round 1B, Playoff 2nd leg 2005-08-06 Harare Sports Club, Harare, Zimbabwe RWC Qualifier, Africa, Round 1B, Playoff 1st leg 2005-06-25 2004-09-11 Harare Sports Club, Harare, Zimbabwe African CAR Championship, Division 1 South, Pool 1 2004-07-31 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya 2004-07-24 Hartsfield Ground, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe Friendly, Kenya Tour 2003-07-05 Kampala African CAR Championship, Division 1, Pool B 2003-06-14 Kampala 2003-05-25 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Friendly, Zimbabwe tour 2002-10-05 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya 2002-09-28 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Kenya Airways Cup 2002-07-21 2002-05-18 Harare Sports Club, Harare, Zimbabwe Friendly, Uganda tour. First match between these two nations. Used by Zimbabwe as warm up for RWC qualifying. 2001-09-29 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya 2001-07-28 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya 1997-08-23 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya 1993-07-03 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya RWC Qualifier, Africa, Round 1, Group 2. Match Report 1989-08-13 Harare Sports Club, Harare, Zimbabwe Friendly, Kenya Tour. Score was 6 – 22 at half-time. 1987-08-07 Nairobi Confederation of African Rugby (CAR) Championship. Score was 3 – 26 at half-time. 1985-05-01 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Friendly, Zimbabwe tour. 1982-03-27 KenyaEast Africa Sailsbury Sports Club, Sailsbury, Zimbabwe Match was between Zimbabwe and East Africa (not Kenya) on their Seventh Tuskers Tour to Zambia and Zimbabwe. See Note Sailsbury had not yet been renamed as Harare. 1981-05-23 RFUEA Ground, Nairobi, Kenya Friendly, Zimbabwe tour. First match between these two nations. Uganda Kenya Kenya Uganda Between 1960 and 1980 there were frequent but irregular matches between Kenya and Uganda; records of the results of these matches may not have survived. 1958-05-24 Uganda Kenya Kampala First official match between these 'nations' although at the time they were regarded as 'districts' within the British Empire.
Notes
a. Lake Victoria and the Victoria Falls are not connected contrary to some reports. The only major river that flows out of Lake Victoria is the River Nile which flows north to the Mediterranean Sea. The Victoria Falls are on the Zambezi River which begins in Zambia and runs south and east to empty into the Indian Ocean.
b. Lake Victoria is Africa’s largest lake it is also the largest tropical lake and the second largest freshwater lake in the world. While the Victoria Falls are neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, it is claimed to be the largest sheet of falling water in the world measuring some 184,500 sq meters.
c. The 1982 match between the Zimbabwe and East Africa is often listed in popular online databases as being Zimbabwe v Kenya. In fact it was played by East Africa on the Seventh Tuskers Tour to Zambia and Zimbabwe. Though this team was almost exclusively (if not entirely) made up of Kenyan players, it is not technically a Kenya v Zimbabwe result. As the Lions is made up of players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, so the East Africa team selects players from Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
References
External links Current Official World Rankings Historic World Rankings