Uganda national football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Uganda

Nickname(s)	The Cranes
Association	Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA)
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation	CECAFA (East & Central Africa)
Head coach	Paul Put
Captain	Khalid Aucho
Most caps	Godfrey Walusimbi (105)
Top scorer	Emmanuel Okwi (28)
Home stadium	Mandela National Stadium
FIFA code	UGA
First colours Second colours Third colours
FIFA ranking
Current	77 2 (7 February 2019)
Highest	62 (January 2016)
Lowest	152 (July 2002)
Elo ranking
Current	87 4 (3 March 2019)
Highest	40 (March 1978)
Lowest	129 (June 2005)
First international
Kenya 1–1 Uganda  (Nairobi, Kenya; 1 May 1926)
Biggest win
Uganda 13–1 Kenya  (Uganda; unknown date 1932)
Biggest defeat
Egypt 6–0 Uganda  (Alexandria, Egypt; 30 July 1995)  Tunisia 6–0 Uganda  (Tunis, Tunisia; 28 February 1999)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances	7 (first in 1962)
Best result	Runners-up (1978)
African Nations Championship
Appearances	6 (first in 2011)
Best result	Group stage (2011, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2019)
Best result	Quarter-finals (2019)
Website	fufa.co.ug

The Uganda national football team also known as The Uganda Cranes represents Uganda in association football and is controlled by the Federation of Uganda Football Associations.

History

It made its debut on 1 May 1926 against Kenya drawing 1–1. It qualified for its debut in the Africa Cup of Nations in 1962, the third edition of the tournament, which included only 4 teams. In the semi-finals, it was defeated and eliminated by United Arab Republic (2–1), and then lost the third place match against Tunisia (3–0).

It returned to the Africa Cup of Nations in 1974, where it was eliminated in the first round following 2 defeats against Egypt and Zambia and a draw against Ivory Coast. It was eliminated in the first round in the 1976 edition, being defeated by Ethiopia, Egypt and Guinea.

In the 1978 Africa Cup of Nations, it finished second in the group stages defeating Congo (3–1) and Morocco (3–0) and lost 3–1 to Tunisia. In the semi-finals it eliminated Nigeria (2–1) and in the final was defeated by Ghana (2–0).

In 2017 it qualified for the African Cup of Nations again after 39 years. It finished the tournament in the first round after two consecutive 1–0 losses to Ghana and Egypt and a 1–1 draw against Mali.

In the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, it progressed to the second round with a 4–0 aggregate win against Togo, and was drawn into a group with Egypt, Ghana and the Republic of Congo. It finished the group with 2 0–0 draws against Ghana, a win and a draw against the Republic of Congo and a victory against Egypt followed by a defeat at the home of the Pharaohs. The 9 points won were not enough for it to qualify against the 13 of the Egyptians who finished first in the standings.

In the qualifiers for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, it cruised through qualifiers against Tanzania, Cape Verde and Lesotho. In the competition proper, a 2–0 victory against DR Congo meant that it had won its first match in the competition for 41 years. In the other 2 games of the group Uganda obtained a draw against Zimbabwe (1–1) and a defeat against the hosts Egypt (2–0) qualifying in second place, to be eliminated in the round of 16 by Senegal (1–0). They qualified for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after South Sudan beat Congo 3-2 on November 14, 2024.

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2023

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification 17 November	Guinea	2–1	Uganda	Berkane, Morocco
14:00 UTC+1	Camara  10' Cissé  90+5'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400017612	Bayo  30'	Stadium: Stade Municipal de Berkane

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification 21 November	Somalia	0–1	Uganda	Berkane, Morocco
14:00 UTC+1		https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400017613	Mato  4'	Stadium: Stade Municipal de Berkane

2024

Friendly 19 January	Kuwait	0–2	Uganda	Cairo, Egypt
17:00 UTC+1		https://www.sofascore.com/kuwait-uganda/BUbsthc	Ssekiganda  10' Kitata  85'	Stadium: Cairo International Stadium

Friendly 22 March	Comoros	4–0	Uganda	Marrakech, Morocco
21:00 UTC±0	Saïd  7', 56' Selemani  8', 66'	https://www.vavel.com/en-us/live/2024/03/22/1176960-comoros-vs-uganda-live-score-updates-in-international-friendly-match.html		Stadium: Stade de Marrakech

Friendly 26 March	Uganda	2–2	Ghana	Marrakech, Morocco
16:00 UTC±0	Mukwala  23' (pen.) Shaban  82'	https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2024/03/26/world/friendlies/uganda/ghana/4334485/	Opoku  7' J. Ayew  28' (pen.)	Stadium: Stade de Marrakech Referee: Bouchra Kaboubi (Morocco)

2026 World Cup qualification 7 June	Uganda	1–0	Botswana	Kampala, Uganda
19:00 UTC+3	Shaban  74'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400018197		Stadium: Mandela National Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Clement Franklin Kpan (Ivory Coast)

2026 World Cup qualification 10 June	Uganda	1–2	Algeria	Kampala, Uganda
19:00 UTC+3	Mutyaba  10'	https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/match-centre/match/520/288282/288289/400018196	Aouar  46' Benrahma  58'	Stadium: Mandela National Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Adissa Abdul Raphiou Ligali (Benin)

AFCON qualification 6 September	South Africa	2–2	Uganda	Johannesburg, South Africa
18:00 UTC+2	Lyle Foster  14', Mbatha  90+5'		Denis Omedi  51', Rogers Mato  54'	Stadium: Orlando Stadium Referee: Pierre Ghislain Atcho

AFCON qualification 9 September	Uganda	2–0	Congo	Kampala, Uganda
19:00 UTC+3				Stadium: Mandela National Stadium

AFCON qualification 6 October	Uganda	1–0	South Sudan	Kampala, Uganda
				Stadium: Mandela National Stadium

AFCON qualification 14 October	South Sudan	1–2	Uganda	Juba, South Sudan
				Stadium: Juba Stadium

AFCON qualification 10 November	Uganda	0–2	South Africa	Kampala, Uganda
		https://www.cafonline.com/caf-africa-cup-of-nations/match-centre?competition=601&season=2024&match=2459974	Morena  49' Maswanganyi  89'	Stadium: Mandela National Stadium Referee: Alhadi Allaou Mahamat (Chad)

AFCON qualification 18 November	Congo	v	Uganda	Brazzaville, Congo
				Stadium: Stade Alphonse Massemba-Débat

Coaching staff

Position	Staff
Head coach	Paul Put
Assistant coach	Sam Ssimbwa
Performance manager	Sven De Wilde
Goalkeeper coach	Gery Osste
Physical coach	Mathieu Denis
Team Doctor	Arnaud Depraetere
Physiotherapist & Fitness coach	Arthur Naudts
Video analyst	Jelle Sevenhant

Coaching history

Interim coaches are listed in italics.

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches against South Africa and Congo on 15 and 19 November 2024.

Caps and goals are correct as of 15 November 2024, after the match against South Africa.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Ismail Watenga	(1995-05-15) 15 May 1995 (age 29)	34	0	Lamontville Golden Arrows
	1GK	Charles Lukwago	(1993-12-11) 11 December 1993 (age 30)	24	0	Venda
	1GK	Nafian Alionzi	(1996-03-01) 1 March 1996 (age 28)	6	0	Defence Force
	1GK	Mutwalibi Mugolofa	(2000-11-02) 2 November 2000 (age 24)	0	0	KCCA
	2DF	Isaac Muleme	(1992-10-10) 10 October 1992 (age 32)	51	0	Viktoria Žižkov
	2DF	Timothy Awany	(1996-08-06) 6 August 1996 (age 28)	45	0	Ashdod
	2DF	Halid Lwaliwa	(1998-08-19) 19 August 1998 (age 26)	38	1	Bregalnica
	2DF	Aziz Kayondo	(2002-10-06) 6 October 2002 (age 22)	26	2	Slovan Liberec
	2DF	Bevis Mugabi	(1995-05-01) 1 May 1995 (age 29)	25	1	Motherwell
	2DF	Kenneth Semakula	(2002-11-14) 14 November 2002 (age 22)	22	0	Villa
	2DF	Gavin Kizito	(2002-01-14) 14 January 2002 (age 22)	12	0	Villa
	2DF	Geoffery Wasswa	(1996-08-23) 23 August 1996 (age 28)	3	0	Ethiopian Coffee
	3MF	Khalid Aucho	(1993-08-08) 8 August 1993 (age 31)	75	2	Young Africans
	3MF	Allan Okello	(2000-07-04) 4 July 2000 (age 24)	28	3	Vipers
	3MF	Taddeo Lwanga	(1994-05-21) 21 May 1994 (age 30)	27	1	APR
	3MF	Bobosi Byaruhanga	(2001-12-03) 3 December 2001 (age 23)	25	0	Austin
	3MF	Travis Mutyaba	(2005-08-07) 7 August 2005 (age 19)	22	2	Bordeaux
	3MF	Ronald Ssekiganda	(1995-09-13) 13 September 1995 (age 29)	8	1	Villa
	3MF	Saidi Mayanja	(2003-08-12) 12 August 2003 (age 21)	0	0	KCCA
	4FW	Rogers Mato	(1998-10-20) 20 October 1998 (age 26)	30	4	AP Brera
	4FW	Derrick Nsibambi	(1994-06-19) 19 June 1994 (age 30)	26	7	KCCA
	4FW	Steven Mukwala	(1999-07-15) 15 July 1999 (age 25)	20	1	Asante Kotoko
	4FW	Denis Omedi	(1996-06-13) 13 June 1996 (age 28)	11	2	Kitara
	4FW	Jude Ssemugabi	(1997-03-03) 3 March 1997 (age 27)	4	1	Kitara
	4FW	Hakim Kiwanuka	(2000-09-11) 11 September 2000 (age 24)	2	0	Villa
	4FW	John Paul Dembe	(2005-07-03) 3 July 2005 (age 19)	0	0	Häcken
	4FW	Calvin Kabuye	(2003-03-28) 28 March 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Sandvikens
	4FW	Shafik Nana Kwikiriza	(2004-03-03) 3 March 2004 (age 20)	0	0	KCCA

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up in the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Tom Ikara	(1997-02-12) 12 February 1997 (age 27)	3	0	BUL	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
GK	Giosue Bellagambi	(2001-11-08) 8 November 2001 (age 23)	1	0	Huddersfield Town	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
GK	Jack Komakech	(2002-07-31) 31 July 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Vipers	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
GK	Hannington Ssebwalunyo	(1994-01-19) 19 January 1994 (age 30)	0	0	Maroons	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
GK	Joel Mutakubwa	(1994-07-17) 17 July 1994 (age 30)	5	0	Gaddafi	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024 PRE
DF	Nicholas Mwere	(2001-03-13) 13 March 2001 (age 23)	1	0	BUL	v.  South Sudan; 14 October 2024
DF	Elvis Bwomono	(1998-11-29) 29 November 1998 (age 26)	10	0	St Mirren	v.  Congo; 9 September 2024
DF	Kaka Omony	(1999-10-23) 23 October 1999 (age 25)	2	0	Bright Stars	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
DF	Toby Sibbick	(1999-05-23) 23 May 1999 (age 25)	1	0	Heart of Midlothian	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
DF	Nathan Asiimwe	(2004-12-29) 29 December 2004 (age 19)	0	0	Charlton Athletic	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
DF	Livingstone Mulondo	(1996-10-15) 15 October 1996 (age 28)	7	0	Vipers	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
DF	Rogers Torach	(2003-06-23) 23 June 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Vipers	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
DF	Patrick Bayiga	(1993-08-15) 15 August 1993 (age 31)	0	0	Maroons	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
DF	Rashid Okocha	(1993-12-10) 10 December 1993 (age 30)	0	0	NEC	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
MF	Allan Kyambadde	(1996-01-15) 15 January 1996 (age 28)	25	1	El Dakhleya	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
MF	Ashraf Mugume	(1998-11-16) 16 November 1998 (age 26)	5	0	KCCA	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
MF	Moses Opondo	(1997-10-28) 28 October 1997 (age 27)	3	0	Horsens	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
MF	Bright Anukani	(2000-06-26) 26 June 2000 (age 24)	18	3	Vipers	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
MF	Laban Tibiita	(1998-04-14) 14 April 1998 (age 26)	3	0	URA	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
MF	Hudu Mulikyi	(1995-04-25) 25 April 1995 (age 29)	2	0	URA	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
MF	Allan Oyirwoth	(2007-01-23) 23 January 2007 (age 17)	2	0	MYDA	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
MF	Ramz Kawooya	(1999-01-27) 27 January 1999 (age 25)	1	0	Express	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
FW	Muhammad Shaban	(1998-01-11) 11 January 1998 (age 26)	25	2	KCCA	v.  Congo; 9 September 2024
FW	Fahad Bayo	(1998-05-10) 10 May 1998 (age 26)	29	9	Vyškov	v.  Algeria; 10 June 2024
FW	Patrick Kakande	(2003-04-25) 25 April 2003 (age 21)	2	0	Villa	v.  Algeria; 10 June 2024
FW	Umar Lutalo	(2003-12-15) 15 December 2003 (age 20)	1	0	Villa	v.  Algeria; 10 June 2024
FW	Milton Karisa	(1995-07-27) 27 July 1995 (age 29)	50	6	Vipers	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
FW	Moses Aliro	(1996-02-09) 9 February 1996 (age 28)	3	0	URA	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
FW	Carl James Mujaguzi	(2000-05-05) 5 May 2000 (age 24)	1	0	Athlone Town	v.  Ghana; 26 March 2024
FW	Nelson Senkatuka	(1997-09-10) 10 September 1997 (age 27)	13	0	Bright Stars	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
FW	Arafat Usama	(2002-09-27) 27 September 2002 (age 22)	3	0	KCCA	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
FW	Alex Kitata	(1998-01-09) 9 January 1998 (age 26)	1	1	BUL	v.  Kuwait; 19 January 2024
DEC Refused to join the team after the call-up. INJ Withdrew due to an injury. PRE Preliminary squad. RET Has retired from international association football. SUS Suspended from the team. WD Withdrew.

Player records

Players in bold are still active with Uganda.

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1958	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1962 to 1974	Did not enter									Did not enter
1978	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	3	4
1982	Withdrew									Withdrew
1986	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	1	3
1990										2	1	0	1	2	3
1994	Withdrew during qualifying									Withdrew during qualifying
1998	Did not qualify									2	0	0	2	1	5
2002										2	0	1	1	4	7
2006										12	3	2	7	10	18
2010										6	3	1	2	8	9
2014										6	2	2	2	5	6
2018										8	4	3	1	7	2
2022										6	2	3	1	3	2
2026	To be determined									4	2	0	2	4	4
2030										To be determined
2034
Total		0/16								52	19	12	21	49	53

Africa Cup of Nations Africa Cup of Nations record Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA 1957 Not affiliated to CAF 1959 1962 Fourth place 4th 2 0 0 2 1 5 1963 Withdrew 1965 Did not qualify 1968 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 2 8 1970 Did not qualify 1972 1974 Group stage 6th 3 0 1 2 3 5 1976 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 2 6 1978 Runners-up 2nd 5 3 0 2 9 7 1980 Withdrew 1982 1984 Did not qualify 1986 1988 1990 Withdrew 1992 to 2015 Did not qualify 2017 Group stage 13th 3 0 1 2 1 3 2019 Round of 16 13th 4 1 1 2 3 4 2021 Did not qualify 2023 2025 To be determined 2027 Qualified as co-hosts Total Runners-up 8/36 23 4 3 16 21 38 African Nations Championship African Nations Championship record Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA 2009 Did not qualify 2011 Group stage 15th 3 0 0 3 1 5 2014 12th 3 1 1 1 3 4 2016 12th 3 0 2 1 3 4 2018 12th 3 0 1 2 1 4 2020 14th 3 0 1 2 3 7 2022 11th 3 1 1 1 2 3 2024 Qualified as co-hosts Total Group stage 18 2 6 10 13 27 African Games Year Round Pld W D L GF GA 1965 6th place 5 1 1 3 10 14 1973–1987 Did not enter Total - 5 1 1 3 10 14 CECAFA Cup Main article: CECAFA Cup (1973–2023) CECAFA Cup – 1 Gold medal 15 times CECAFA Cup – 2 Silver medal 5 times CECAFA Cup – 3 Bronze medal 7 times Other tournaments Year Round 1989 Peace and Friendship Cup Runners-up 1962 Ugandan Independence Tournament Runners-up

Head-to-head record

Completely updated and corrected per the cited source on 15 November 2024

Against	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	GF	GA	GD
Algeria	12	2	4	6	10	19	−9
Angola	8	3	2	3	10	10	0
Benin	2	1	0	1	3	5	−2
Bahrain	2	0	1	1	1	3	–2
Botswana	6	4	2	0	8	2	+6
Burkina Faso	8	1	5	2	4	6	−2
Burundi	14	8	3	3	25	10	+15
Cameroon	6	1	3	2	7	11	−4
Central African Republic	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1
Cape Verde	4	3	0	1	3	1	+2
Chad	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2
Comoros	3	2	0	1	2	4	–2
Congo	7	4	1	2	13	7	+6
DR Congo	14	5	2	7	10	23	−13
Djibouti	5	5	0	0	34	3	+31
Ecuador	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1
Egypt	19	2	2	15	13	36	−23
Eritrea	5	4	0	1	12	4	+8
Ethiopia	33	14	9	10	47	39	+8
Gabon	2	0	1	1	0	1	−1
Gambia	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Ghana	13	3	6	4	10	13	−3
Guinea	7	2	1	4	11	14	−3
Guinea-Bissau	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3
Iceland	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Iran	1	0	1	0	2	2	0
Iraq	2	0	1	2	2	3	–1
Ivory Coast	5	1	2	2	5	7	–2
Kenya	55	19	26	11	62	58	+4
Kuwait	2	1	1	0	3	1	+2
Lebanon	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2
Lesotho	5	3	2	0	8	0	+8
Liberia	4	2	0	2	2	4	−2
Libya	3	1	1	1	6	6	0
Madagascar	6	3	0	3	10	6	+4
Malawi	29	12	8	9	33	30	+3
Mali	7	0	4	3	4	10	−6
Mauritania	3	3	0	0	6	0	+6
Mauritius	5	3	1	1	13	5	+8
Morocco	4	2	0	2	7	8	–1
Moldova	1	1	0	0	3	2	+1
Namibia	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1
Niger	9	4	2	3	12	9	+3
Nigeria	8	4	2	2	6	5	+1
Rwanda	35	15	11	9	43	26	+17
São Tomé and Príncipe	1	1	0	0	3	1	+2
Saudi Arabia	2	0	1	1	1	3	−2
Senegal	6	1	2	3	3	7	−4
Seychelles	3	3	0	0	8	2	+6
Somalia	23	19	3	1	69	9	+60
South Africa	7	0	2	5	8	13	−5
South Sudan	8	6	1	1	20	6	+14
Sudan	24	12	8	4	35	20	+15
Tajikistan	1	0	1	0	1	1	0
Tanzania	60	33	17	10	100	54	+46
Togo	9	2	1	6	6	12	−6
Tunisia	5	0	0	5	1	16	−15
Turkmenistan	1	0	1	0	0	0	0
Uzbekistan	1	0	0	1	2	4	–2
Yemen	1	0	1	0	2	2	0
Zambia	38	12	7	19	41	51	-10
Zanzibar	1	0	0	1	1	2	-1
Zimbabwe	16	2	9	5	11	14	−3
Total	571	234	159	178	767	612	+155

Note: Country in italic is not a member of FIFA.

Source:

Honours

Continental

• Africa Cup of Nations
  • Runners-up (1): 1978

Regional

• CECAFA Cup
  • Champions (15): 1973, 1976, 1977, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019
  • Runners-up (5): 1974, 1982, 1994, 1995, 2000
  • Third-place (7): 1983, 1984, 1987, 1991, 2007, 2010, 2017

See also

In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Uganda para niños