The President of the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA), Wallace Karia will be one of the dignitaries during the inaugural ceremony of the refurbished Juba National Stadium on June 11th, 2024.

” We are glad that finally the Stadium will be inaugurated and after a FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier match will take place at the same Stadium between South Sudan and Sudan, said

Augustino Madut, President of the South Sudan Football Association (SSFA).

Madut, who is also the Vice President of CECAFA confirmed that Karia together with the Executive Director John Auka Gecheo had arrived in Juba for the ceremony.

The President of the Republic of South Sudan, Salva Kiir and the FIFA President Gianni Infantino and CAF Director of Member Associations, Sarah Mukuna are among the other dignitaries expected to grace the ceremony.

FIFA through the FIFA Forward program funded the refurbishment of the Juba National Stadium. The Stadium, a 7,000 seater will host an International match after five years.

Peter Maker Manyang Mabok, captain of the South Sudan national team (Bright Star) during the press conference on Monday made it clear that it is a sweet feeling that they will finally play in-front of the home fans. ” We are happy and looking forward to playing in-front of our fans and work hard to make them happy with a good result, ” added the midfielder.

South Sudan are currently placed 5th in Group B with 2 points after their two draws with Togo and Mauritania, and a defeat to Senegal in their opening match last year.

The President of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), Aleksander Ćeferin has arrived in Uganda on a 2-day visit.

Ćeferin who arrived on Sunday with a group of over 200 people makes his second return to Uganda under the invitation of the Aliguma Foundation Sports & Empowerment Center (AFSEC).

The UEFA President will feature in a charity match with the UEFA Legends team against the Uganda Parliament Team on Monday at the St. Marys Stadium, Kitende.

The proceeds from the charity match will contribute to supporting the Boy and Girl-Child. Ćeferin is also expected to visit some soccer Academies and later travel over 200 kms to the town of Masindi at the Aliguma Foundation Sports & Empowerment Center (AFSEC) in Kinuuma Village- Bigando Parish, Miirya Sub-County.

Here, Čeferin will witness the foundation’s significant impact across the country and officially commission the works of the training soccer pitch. Slovenia FA President Radenko Mijatović is also part of the team that traveled with the UEFA President.

In 2019 Aliguma Foundation received a grant from the UEFA Foundation for Children from a global as part of those academies picked for the Sports For Resilience & Empowerment Project (SREP).

Last year, Aliguma Foundation secured a second grant, showcasing UEFA’s satisfaction with the effective utilization and accountability of the initial funding.

The Rwanda Football Federation (FERWAFA) have appointed a new coach Torsten Frank Spittler who is expected to start preparing the team ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers.

Spittler, a UEFA Pro license holder takes over from Carlos Ferrer who left in August this year after failing to help the Amavubi Stars qualify for the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2023.

” FERWAFA is pleased to announce that Torsten Spittler Frank (61) has been appointed as the new head coach of the men’s Rwanda national team, ” stated the FERWAFA Statement released on Wednesday.

Spittler who handled Germany Bundesliga side 1960 Munich in 1993 has had two stints in Africa. He was a chief instructor in Sierra Leone in 2025 and was was a technical director of the Mozambican Football Federation from 2029 to 2011.

Spittler is now the fifth German to coach the Rwanda national team after Otto Pfister (1972 -76), Rudi Gutendorf (1999-2000), Michael Nees (2006-2007) and Antoine Hey (2017-2018).

Rwanda who are placed in Group C of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers will start this campaign against Zimbabwe and later South Africa this November. The Super Eagles of Nigeria, Benin and Lesotho are the other teams in the group.

Kenyan International Michael Olunga was on target as his side Al-Duhail suffered a 4-3 defeat away to Christiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr in the Asian FC Champions League match played on Tuesday evening.

It was the third straight win for the Saudi Arabia Premier League side in Group E of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League.

Anderson Talisca gave the hosts the lead after 25 minutes at the King Saud University Stadium.

Later in the second half Senegal captain Sadio Mane made it 2-0 after 56 minutes, but Ismail Mohamad pulled one back for the Qatari team after 63 minutes. Christiano Ronaldo later netted a brace for Al-Nassr, while Al Moez Ali and Olunga added two more goals for Al-Duhail.

Olunga, also the Harambee Stars captain said although they lost the match, he was happy to be on the score sheet. « We need to keep working hard because there are more matches to be played, » added Olunga.

Al-Nassr top Group E with maximum points after three matches, while Persepolis have six points. Olunga’s team is placed third with one point, while Istiklol who also have a point are bottom of the log.