For nearly two weeks, the players of the Rev. John Foundation Little League team from Kampala, Uganda, believed they were headed to Williamsport, Pa., for the Little League World Series. The team of 11- to 13-year-olds, which plays with donated equipment, was the first African team to advance that far.

But their fairy tale story ran smack into United States immigration red tape. The players and their coaches learned this week that at least some of the team’s visa applications were denied by the State Department. The Little League World Series, which begins Aug. 19, will proceed without them.

“It is unfortunate, as we were very much looking forward to welcoming the first African team to the Little League Baseball World Series,” Stephen Keener, president of Little League Baseball and Softball, said in a statement.

The Ugandans were tripped up by their country’s inconsistent infrastructure and the United States’ strict requirements for travel visas. The State Department did not give specific reasons for the denial, but it told Little League officials that there were discrepancies in the players’ documentation. In Uganda, birth certificates are far from the norm, and establishing someone’s age and identity is complicated because parents and guardians are often illiterate.