Weekly press conference
Wednesday 26th June 2019
FUFA House Mengo
FUFA is convinced that club licensing will improve the status of the game if the exercise is taken into account with a warm reception. The club licensing tool took off seriously in Uganda in 2012 with a road map for clubs before every new football season.
Unlike in previous seasons, the process for next season started way back in February 2019 with education and sensitisation seminars. The workshops were organised for top-flight teams (CAF Regional Licensing in April at (Sheraton Hotel).
The FUFA Club Licensing Manager Ivan Kintu Bayige briefed the media about the latest updates on the exercise during the weekly press conference at FUFA House Mengo on Wednesday.
According to Bayige, the strategy aimed at improving on infrastructure that was started this season(2018/19) of a fully green pitch and an internal perimeter fence has been revised to include more three aspects – well-furnished dressing rooms, full sanitary facilities and physical separation of fans.
Any Club that will fail to meet the five stadium requirements shall not be allowed to play in the StarTimes Uganda Premier League 2019/2020 season.
In a bid to creating enough room for the newly promoted clubs, the FUFA Executive adjusted the deadline for submission of mandatory requirements from 11th June – 22nd June, suitably, a number of clubs have responded fairly well as per the files submitted to the Licensing committee.
Meanwhile, there are few clubs that have struggled to submit the files before the deadline. The committee will meet this Thursday to decide the fate of such clubs and agree on whom to inspect.
SC Villa, Police FC, Kyetume FC, Onduparaka FC, and Tooro United FC have submitted 10% while Vipers SC has not submitted any requirement so far. KCCA FC and Proline FC have submitted the minimum CAF Licensing requirements.
‘We decided to increase the requirements for infrastructure mainly with the stadium from two minimum requirements to five. A Club that fails to meet the minimum requirements shall not be allowed to play in the 2019/2020 season.’ Said Ivan Bayige
Bayige also confirmed that all players in the Uganda Premier League are required to have intermediaries by the start of the 2019/2020 season.
‘Our Clubs have attended quite a number of workshops concerning Club licensing including that of CAF in April and we also held a Clubs Symposium in May. Clubs should be attending to the process early enough’ Said Uganda Premier League CEO Bernard Bainamani
The process produced fruits for the league and clubs last season as Tooro United, Mbarara City, Nyamityobora and Paidha Black Angles managed to upgrade their stadiums.
MAIN PHOTO: L-R FUFA Club Licensing Manager Ivan Kintu Bayige and UPL CEO Bernard Bainamani during the Club Licensing Press Conference at FUFA House Mengo