Namboole Stadium far from being perfect

Ugandan football fraternity mood was euphoric after FUFA (Federation of Uganda Football Association) announced the reopening of Namboole with UPL test matches, BUL vs Vipers, and KCCA vs SC Villa on Wednesday 1, May 2024.

For a stadium that has been under renovation for close to four years since hosting its last international match between Uganda and Malawi in November 2019, fans were expecting a different kind of atmosphere and setup.

However, upon arriving at the stadium, several fans were disappointed with poor entrance handling, and lack of access to refreshments before, during, and after the games to make matters worse, there were some things inside the stadium like scoreboards that barely showed anything, installation of sound systems that were not done yet.

That is a snippet of the reactions from fans after both games as evident on their social media platforms. 

People such as myself would like to think Namboole should not be the same after all the money, readiness, and positive talk the State Minister of Sports, Peter Ogwang has been preaching since the start of this year, so the dissatisfaction and negative comments in the aftermath of the test matches is valid.

But FUFA should have asked themselves this question, if we reopen Namboole, what will the fans' dream of Namboole's new look like? because they knew fans were craving for a new Namboole expensive experience considering its previous standard.

In the grand scheme of things, FUFA might not have quantified the fan's expectations upon making that announcement but they did what anyone in their position would have done due to the public demand for Namboole’s reopening.

With the ramifications felt by both fans and FUFA after Namboole was deemed unfit by the Confederation of African Football such as Uganda Cranes not hosting its games at the stadium hence affecting Uganda’s chances of qualifying for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations that took place in Ivory Coast in 2024, this reopening should have been a glimmer of hope.

It was encouraging though that fans turned up in massive numbers to cheer their respective clubs. That was a positive step in terms of reinvigorating the love for domestic football which had dried out many years ago and maybe hosting the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

There is huge potential in the new Namboole stadium if it is completed fully before this year ends but we all know actions will speak louder than any words and we have seen too little of it so far.