• Thursday, January 2
• Maroons vs Mbale Heroes – 4:00 pm, Luzira

Maroons Football Club have received a significant boost ahead of their Thursday match against Mbale Heroes FC.

Stylish midfielder Jackson Nunda has been cleared fit to return to action and is available for selection after more than a month out with injury.

Nunda, who has scored two goals this season, is now ready to feature in the highly anticipated first meeting between the two sides.

Maroons will be looking to build on their recent win against Police FC at Kavumba Recreation Centre while Mbale Heroes are seeking to bounce back from a disappointing heavy home loss to Vipers SC.

Mubarak Wamboya will be in charge of Mbale Heroes following the suspension of head coach Asaph Mwebaze. The team is currently in the red zone of the table with 9 points in 13 games while Maroons sit 6th with the same number of games played.

The hosts will, however, continue without the services of Darious Ojok, who remains sidelined as he continues his rehabilitation but with Nunda’s return, the team is expected to receive a significant boost in attacking midfield.

The head-to-head between Uganda’s long-distance runner Jacob Kiplimo and Ethiopia’s Berihu Aregawi at the San Silvestre Vallecana in Madrid on New Year’s Eve did not disappoint.

The two favourites in the 10km Road Race fought for victory right from the beginning of the race to the finish line, with a photo-finish needed to determine the winner.

Aregawi was proclaimed champion of this special edition on the 60th anniversary. The Ethiopian clocked 26:32, a new course record and registered the second-fastest 10km road time in history.

https://twitter.com/atletismoRFEA/status/1874365139173937631

Kiplimo also recorded 26:32 in a race that began with a blistering pace that left the competition to just six runners within the opening couple of kilometres and a two-man battle by the eight-minute mark.

Homeboy Adel Mechaal claimed the third spot on the podium with a time of 27:40.

Ugandan long-distance runner Belinda Chemutai closed the year on a bright note, running a personal best in the Women’s 5km.

Chemutai finished third in the World Athletics Label Road Race at the Cursa dels Nassos in Barcelona on Tuesday, December 31 2024.

The Uganda Prisons athlete posted a time of 14:36 to finish in third behind Ethiopia’s Medina Eisa who settled for silver having run 13 seconds faster.

However, above the two was the Paris Olympic Games 5,000m and 10,000m champion Beatrice Chebet of Kenya who clinched Gold with a 13:54 time, a world record time over the distance.

It should be remembered that Chemutai claimed the second edition of the Elgon Half Marathon where she posted 1:11:15.

World Athletics Label Road Race Results | Women

1. Beatrice Chebet (KEN) 13:54
2. Medina Eisa (ETH) 14:23
3. Belinda Chemutai (UGA) 14:36
4. Melknat Wudu (ETH) 14:53
5. Jana Van Lent (BEL) 15:24

• Event: CHAN 2024
• Dates: 1^st to 28^th February 2025
• Hosts: Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania

The Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) will conduct the draw for the African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024 tournament on 31^st December 2024 at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.

The three hosts Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania are seeded as A1, B1 and C1 respectively.

The other countries are seeded based on the performance from the last three editions of the tournament (2018, 2020 and 2022).

Pot 1 has two countries Morocco and the reigning champions, Senegal.

Pot 2 has five countries; Guinea, Zambia, Madagascar, Rwanda and Sudan.

The third pot has the remaining eight countries; Mauritania, Niger, Congo, Angola, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Democratic Republic of Congo has two titles (2009 and 2016); same as Morocco (2018 and 2020). Tunisia (2011), Libya (2014) and Senegal (2022) have won it one time apiece.

This will be the first time that the CHAN tournament which exclusively accommodates players featuring in the domestic leagues will be co-hosted by three countries.

The tournament will kick off on 1^st February and climax by 28^th February 2025 in the three East African countries of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.

The host venues are Mandela National Stadium – Namboole (45,000), Nyayo National Stadium (18,000), Moi International Sports Centre – Kasarani (55,000), Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium (60,000) and Amaan Stadium (20,000).

This tournament is being used by CAF as a precursor to the AFCON 2027 tournament that will still be staged in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.

Mbale Heroes Football Club have named Mubarak Wamboya Abu as the club’s head coach on an interim basis following the suspension of Asaph Mwebaze.

The club suspended Mwebaze for 28 days citing indiscipline and now have a son of the soil Wamboya at the helm.

In a statement released by the club yesterday, Wamboya, who has coached Gaddafi and Onduparaka and also worked with Vipers SC will handle the remaining two rounds of the league.

“Mbale Heroes is pleased to announce the appointment of Mubarak Wamboya Abu as the interim head coach for the remaining two games of the season after the suspension of our head coach Asaph Mwebaze,” the statement read in parts.

The remaining two fixtures to close the first round for the newly promoted side are Maroons (away) and NEC (home) on January 2 and 9 respectively.

It remains a mystery whether Mwebaze will be reinstated after serving his temporary ban or whether a new coach will be named permanently.

Wamboya is the third tactician to be handed the reigns at Mbale Heroes after Richard Malinga and Mwebaze.

The 1999 Uganda Cup winners sit in the bottom three at the moment with 9 points after just two victories, three draws and eight defeats.

• Event: CAF U-17 Girls Integrated Football Tournament (GIFT)
• Dates: 7^th to 18^th January 2025
• Host Country: Tanzania
• Venue: Azam Complex Stadium, Dar-es-Salaam City

The Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) has organized the inaugural CAF U17 Girls Integrated Football Tournament (GIFT) in Tanzania.

Uganda is among the seven countries from the CECAFA Zone that will be represented by clubs at this championship scheduled for 7th – 18th January 2025 at the Azam Complex in Dar-es-Salaam.

Boni Consilli Girls Vocational team will represent Uganda in this U-17 tournament.

Hosts Tanzania have two clubs; JKT Queens and TDS Girls Academy. Kenya has Kenya Academy of Sports, Aigle Noir FC (Burundi), Bahir Dar Kenema FC (Ethiopia), City Lights Football Academy (South Sudan) and Hilaad FC from Somalia. 

The GIFT is a pilot initiative to promote the development of women’s football across Africa. The tournament provides a platform to showcase young female footballers, build player capacity and promote women’s football at all levels. 

The competition is part of CAF’s strategy to promote gender equality and empower the next generation of female footballers.

CAF has set out to increase the participation of girls in football across the continent, encourage mother associations and clubs to invest in girls’ football clubs, leagues and Under-17 women’s national teams, and provide a pathway for girls to transition from school football to competitive football structures.

Eight clubs from the CECAFA region will compete:

• Aigle Noir FC (Burundi)
• Bahir Dar Kenema FC (Ethiopia)
• Kenya Academy of Sports (Kenya)
• JKT Queens (Tanzania)
• TDS Girls Academy (Tanzania)
• Boni Consilli Girls Vocational Team (Uganda)
• City Lights Football Academy (South Sudan)
• Hilaad FC (Somalia) 

Vipers Sports Club forward Allan Okello will lead Uganda Cranes aagainst Burundi in the CHAN Qualifiers match at Hamz Stadium in Nakivubo.

The line for the first leg of he qualifiers has been named with Okello handed the captains arm band nd will be joined by Saidi Mayanja and clubmate Paul Mbowa in the middle of the park.

The forward line has Isaac Ogwang, youngster Shafik Kwikiriza and Jude Ssemugabi who has been infine form recently.

Rogers Torach and Hilary Mukundane will pair up in central defense with Gavin Kizito and Derrick Ndahiro occupying the right and lef back positions respectively.

Joel Mutakubwa starts between the posts.

Kawempe Muslim reclaimed top spot in the Fufa Women Super League table after a 3-1 home victory over Tooro Queens.

Samalie Nakacwa, Agnes Nabukenya and Hadijah Nadago were on target for Kawempe while Shaaron Nabbowa netted the consolation for Tooro.

Nakacwa opened the scoring in the 17th minute and Agnes Nabukenya doubled the lead barely four minutes later, a lead the hosts took into the halftime break.

Fifteen minutes into the second, Nandago all but sealed the points before Nabbowa pulled one back for the visitors with ten minutes to play, which only turned into a consolation.

Tooro Queens completed their first round second from the bottom, with 5 points from 11 games.

Meanwhile, the defending champions will complete their first-round schedule with a top-of-the-table clash against Kampala Queens on Saturday, December 28th, 2024.

Saturday Results

• Kampala Queens 3-0 Olila High School
• Uganda Martyrs Lubaga 2-0 Lady Doves

Kampala Queens ascended to second place in the Fufa Women Super League table after beating Olila High School 3-0 at the Omondi Stadium in Lugogo on Saturday.

After a fairly balanced and end-to-end first half that ended goalless, the Queens turned the game on its head in the second half to bag maximum points.

Anita Namata broke the deadlock in the 61st minute, a goal carried into the game’s final ten minutes.

Zainah Nandede extended the lead in the 82nd minute with a headed effort thanks to a telling cross from roving left back Sumayiyah Komuntale.

Catherine Nagadya completed the scoring in the third minute of added time. It was also her first goal of the season.

Kampala Queens still have one match to complete their first-round schedule and they will take on Kawempe Muslim in the top of the table clash on December 28, 2024.

In the other match played on the day, Uganda Martyrs Lubaga beat Lady Doves 2-0 with Latifah Nakasi netting a brace.

Sunday Fixture

• Kawempe Muslim Ladies vs FC Tooro Queens – 10:00am

• Uganda Premier League | Results
• Police 1-2 Maroons
• URA 1-0 Lugazi

Maroons secured a well-deserved 2-1 victory against Police in the Uganda Premier League encounter at Kavumba Recreation Centre on Thursday.

Maroons bounced back to winning ways after suffering a shocking 4-0 defeat to Kitara in the previous match day.

Isaac Ogwang gave the hosts a quick league after he found the back of the net in the sixth minute.

However, even after falling early, Maroons kept composed and played from the back to launch endless attacks.

In the 24th minute, Ivan Asaba was tripped in the box and the referee awarded Maroons a penalty.

Asaba stepped up and converted from the 12-yard mark to level matters.

Despite, Maroons being on the front foot, the first half ended 1-1 setting a great tone ahead of the second stanza.

Eight minutes into the second stanza, Asaba finally gave Maroons the well-deserved lead after being set up by Abel Etrude.

The victory sent Maroons into the sixth position with 19 points while Police lay seventh with 17 points in 13 games.