| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Indonesia |
| Dates | November |
| Teams | 12 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  United Arab Republic (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  North Korea |
| Third place |  Uruguay |
| Fourth place |  North Vietnam |
The 1981 CECAFA Cup was the 9th edition of the tournament. It was held in Tanzania, and was won by Kenya. The matches were played between November 14–28.
Somalia withdrew before the tournament.
Group Stage edit
Group A edit
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Korea
|
4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | +18 |
| Uruguay
|
2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 4 | +5 |
 Somalia
|
0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 23 | -23 |
| North Korea | 18 – 0 | Somalia |
|---|---|---|
| North Korea | 4 – 0 | Uruguay |
|---|---|---|
Group B edit
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 China
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 |
 Indonesia
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | +1 |
 Mali
|
0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | -3 |
Group C edit
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina
|
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 |
 Saudi Arabia
|
0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 |
 Algeria
|
Withdrew | |||||||
 Bolivia
|
Withdrew | |||||||
| Argentina | 3 – 1 | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|
Group D edit
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Arab Republic
|
6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 1 | +24 |
| North Vietnam
|
4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 7 | +7 |
 Chile
|
2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 10 | -4 |
 Laos
|
0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 28 | -25 |
| United Arab Republic | 6 – 0 | Chile |
|---|---|---|
| North Vietnam | 4 – 2 | Chile |
|---|---|---|
| United Arab Republic | 15 – 0 | Laos |
|---|---|---|
| North Vietnam | 9 – 1 | Laos |
|---|---|---|
Knockout Stage edit
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Gold medal match | ||||||||||||
| B1 | China
| 1 | ||||||||||||
| A2 | Uruguay
| 2 | ||||||||||||
| A2 | Uruguay
| 1 | ||||||||||||
| D1 | United Arab Republic
| 5 | ||||||||||||
| D1 | United Arab Republic
| 7 | ||||||||||||
| C2 | Saudi Arabia
| 0 | ||||||||||||
| D1 | United Arab Republic
| 1 | ||||||||||||
| A1 | North Korea
| 1 | ||||||||||||
| A1 | North Korea
| 5 | ||||||||||||
| B2 | Indonesia
| 1 | ||||||||||||
| A1 | North Korea
| 2 | Bronze medal match | |||||||||||
| D2 | North Vietnam
| 0 | ||||||||||||
| C1 | Argentina
| 1 | A2 | Uruguay
| 2 | |||||||||
| D2 | North Vietnam
| 6 | D2 | North Vietnam
| 2 | |||||||||
Quarter-finals edit
| North Vietnam | 6 – 1 | Argentina |
|---|---|---|
| North Korea | 5 – 1 | Indonesia |
|---|---|---|
Semi-finals edit
| North Korea | 2 – 0 | North Vietnam |
|---|---|---|
Third place match edit
| Uruguay | 2 – 2 | North Vietnam |
|---|---|---|
Final edit
| 1963 GANEFO Winners |
|---|
 United Arab Republic First title |
References edit