A goalkeeper playing in England's ninth tier had the chance to become an African king— and turned it down, opting instead to stay with his non-league club in southeast London.

George Desmond Kamurasi, 36, captain of Bexleyheath side SE Dons, was the Tooro Royal Succession Committee's top pick to become the next omukama of the Ugandan kingdom, following the death of his cousin, King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, last month.

Ugandan media reported that 15 of the 18 committee members present had backed him for the throne.

Instead, Kamurasi walked away, telling the 21-person committee he had commitments in England he could not abandon.

Fr Dr Charles Oyo, one of its members, recounted the moment the offer was made and refused.

"After vetting the candidates, we numbered them. We had priority one, priority two and priority three. After that, we vetted them and we engaged them one by one. The first one said, 'No, I have responsibilities and I am not able to be king.'"

The responsibilities in question amount to captaining a club in the ninth tier of English football, some 6,500 kilometres from Fort Portal. Known as "Big G" at SE Dons, the 6-foot-6 goalkeeper is a fixture of the club's social media presence and known for animated, expletive-heavy team talks before kickoff.

SE Dons, founded in 2014 by rapper Don Strapzy and built on a YouTube following before entering the football pyramid, beat Erith Town 2-0 on Saturday to reach the FA Cup second qualifying round.

With Kamurasi out of the running, the committee moved to its next name on the list. "The next candidate accepted the role," Oyo said.

Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma, a news anchor at state broadcaster Uganda Broadcasting Corporation, was installed in Fort Portal on Wednesday — a decision now disputed by members of Oyo's own family, who cite a 2022 will naming his biological son as heir.