Africa-Press – Uganda. Fufa has chosen to take Uganda Cranes upcoming 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Tanzania to Egypt after falling short of options.
The federation had hoped to use the St. Marys stadium in Kitende but the stadium failed the strict Caf test following an inspection in December. The other option Mandela National Stadium, Namboole is beyond reach after the management confirmed that the stadium can only be ready in six months time.
Fufa president Moses Magogo, during an interview with NTV, announced earlier in the week that the federation was looking at Malawi, Zambia and Egypt. In a reasonable turn, Fufa has chosen Egypt because of the various reasons.
Egypt offered variety
Caf passsed only the game Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe to host the games in Malawi. The Flames play Egypt in Alexandria before hosting the return leg of the double-header around the same time.
Zambia had the National Heroes and the Levy Mwanawasa Stadiums in Lusaka and Ndola that qualified to host games. The three fell in the Southern African belt that experiences heavy rains between November and March. Their neighbours Zimbabwe, Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique and
Egypt presented five stadiums that met the requirements. They include the Cairo International stadium, 30th of June Stadium and Al-Salam Stadium based in Cairo. They also have Alexandria Stadium and Borg El Arab in Alexandria and the Suez Canal Stadium.
Tanzania was the other closer choice but Fufa ruled out the option of playing their opponents from their own background. Another factor is that Zambia and Malawi border the Swahili nation.
A return ticket to the three destinations costs around $600 (shs2.2) but Fufa might have looked at the time factor. Flying to Egypt can take less than seven hours while there’s neither a direct route to Lilongwe or Lusaka. The flights either connect through Nairobi, Kenya, Kigali and some go as far as Dubai. Uganda is expected to play and embark immediately for the return match in Dar Es Salaam.
Uganda sit at the bottom of group F with only one point. Algeria leads with six, Niger with two while Tanzania has one as well.
Cranes – Upcoming fixtures
March 2023
Algeria vs. Niger
Uganda vs. Tanzania
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