Matches at the Cecafa have been played out in front of sparse crowds

Kenyans have been condemned as 'pretend' football fans, after failing to turn out to watch matches at the Cecafa Senior Challenge.

The regional tournament for East and Central Africa is taking place in Nairobi in front of small crowds.

Nicholas Musonye, the Secretary-General of Cecafa, says the competition is "a big failure in terms of attendance."

"It's a waste of time bringing a competition to people who won't watch," he told the BBC.

"Kenyans always pretend to to be football fans but they are not and that is why this competition has been a big failure in terms of attendance.

"Kenyans have very bad manners when it comes to watching football - they want to watch in a bar, they want to come in for free."

Musonye was instrumental in persuading Cecafa members to give the tournament to Kenya but he said they have been disappointed by the small crowds.

"I will never fight for any competition to come to this country [again]," he said.

Asked about the interest which Kenyan fans show in the English Premier League, Musonye was dismissive.

"They love something which is not theirs, they love something which is of no value to them," he said.

"This is their tournament, their country is playing and they are not there, they are watching football in a bar."

He revealed that Cecafa had a deficit of around US$65,000 and that the organisation was struggling to pay its bills.

"The government gave us some support, but it is not enough," he said.

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