Africa-Press – Rwanda. The 2024/25 Rwanda Premier League season which recently came to an end has been a rollercoaster with ups and downs, producing moments to cherish on one side and bitter moments hard to savour on the other hand.
There were controversies, plans to fix matches among others but the season has also witnessed and intense title race like never before.
Times Sport sums up the Rwanda Premier League in five key moments worth noting.
Bugesera vs Rayon clash marred by refereeing controversies
Bugesera FC were on the brink of relegation before facing Rayon Sports who were also chasing their first league title since 2019. A lot was at stake but each side had a crucial reason to defend their badge when they went head to head at Bugesera Stadium on May 17.
However, their match couldn’t end as referee match officials were forced to halt it prematurely due to traveling fans’ protests, voicing their frustration over what they called ‘unfair refereeing.’
Rayon supporters felt center referee Patrick Ngaboyisonga was cheating their team after denying them a clean penalty before he instead awarded it to the home side just seconds later. They started throwing bottles and other projectiles onto the field targeting the referee who decided to postpone the game in the 57thminute, citing security reasons.
Rayon were 2-0 down when the match was postponed and they couldn’t turn around the deficit. They could only pull one back through Hakim Bugingo as Bugesera FC prevailed with a 2-1 victory which boosted their hopes of avoiding relegation.
The visitors were, on the other side, in tears as the defeat blew their title hopes. APR FC took the top spot and they never surrendered ever since as they went on to win the title, their sixth in a row.
Vision FC had three coaches in a single season but still got relegated
Vision FC sacked coaches twice pushing to stay in the top tier league but their efforts went to waste as they got relegated back the second division.
The club started the campaign with former SC Villa coach Calum Selby from United Kingdom whom they parted ways after just 6 games in October 2024. Vision FC then brought Abdul Mbarushimana whom they sacked on March 3, after just 5 months at the helm of affairs.
They finished the season with Marcel Lomami but, sadly, they couldn’t survive and got relegated with 3 games to end the season.
It is one of the stories still shocking club proprietor John Birungi who feels he didn’t get enough time prove doubters wrong.
Rayon and APR sacked their coaches in crucial moments
Rayon Sports suspended Brazilian coach Roberto Oliveira Robertinho in April after he failed to deliver a win in Rubavu as Marine FC held them to a 2-2 draw.
Robertinho had only lost to Mukura Victory Sports before then and Rayon were leading the table until Marine put their speed in the title race on the brakes as the Blues lost the top spot for the first time in 2025 after APR FC beat Bugesera FC to climb to the summit.
He was replaced by Claude Rwaka who was fresh from guiding Rayon women to the title.
Rwaka started well and brought the team back to the top but, sadly, the Blues couldn’t hold their nerves as they went on to finish the season without a trophy.
APR, on the other hand, parted ways with Serbian tactician Darko Novic with three games to go.
Reports suggested that Novic was having an impasse with players and had lost control of the dressing room. Mugisha Ndoli took over on an interim basis and guided them to the league trophy.
APR fall in foreign players’ quota trap
One of infamous stories that unfolded in 2024/25 season was the forfeit slapped to APR FC over fielding foreign players beyond the number required by the Rwandan league quota rule.
Novic started 7 foreign players against Gorilla FC as opposed to the six players indicated in the league’s foreign quota rule.
Despite the game ending in a 0-0 draw, it became a big talking point. Gorilla lodged an official complaint to FERWAFA and APR were declared losers (3 points, 3 goals) by forfeit.
-Migi’s match fixing scandal
Then Muhazi United assistant coach Jean Baptiste Mugiraneza alias Migi is currently serving a one-year ban from all football activities over what the Rwanda FA cited as match-fixing.
Migi allegedly tried to fix the game between Musanze FC and Kiyovu Sports at Umuganda Stadium because his boyhood club Kiyovu was in the relegation zone. It was reported that he had agreed terms to coach the Green Baggies next season as long as they survive relegation.
A leaked audio surfaced as Migi is heard offering Musanze defender Shafiq Bakaki to get him signed to Kiyovu once he facilitates the team to win against his own team.
However, the Ugandan centre back turned down the proposal, explaining that it is against his Islamic principles especially during this time of Ramadan when he was observing “Swaum.”
Instead, he chose to inform the club management about the coach’s plot which failed as Musanze went on to win 3-0 with Bakaki scoring the second goal of the game.
The Rwanda FA investigated the case and found the former Amavubi defensive midfielder guilty. He was slapped with a one-year ban from all football related activities.
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