Mudde is highest paid footballer in Kenya and Uganda

By James Bakama and Agencies

AT $1000 (sh2.5m) per month Mudde Musa is the most highly paid footballer in Kenya and Uganda Premier soccer leagues.

While the Sofapaka midfielder's pay might sound like a joke compared to Wayne Rooney's -sh768m per week, Mudde, who is one of several Ugandan footballers in Kenya, is not complaining.

He earns more than ten times what an average player takes home in an entire month in Uganda's top soccer competition. Some Ugandan players earn as low as $40 (sh0.1m) per month.

The gulf between the Nairobi based Mudde and his fellow Ugandans widens even more when you add his winning bonuses and training allowances.

Mudde told Kenyan media last week that he is happy to be playing in Kenya whose league he says is one of the best in Africa. "I am proud to be one of the best earners in the league. It gives me more impetus to continue working hard."

He describes Kenya as a launching pad to greater things in his professional career.  "I want to play in Europe for one of the big clubs in England or Spain. I want to use football to help my family and my country."

Other Ugandan players in the far East earn up to $10,000 (sh25m) a month.

Mudde, 22, believes playing in Kenya has exposed him well as an individual player. "I am young, playing away from home and earning good money. I have learnt how to handle myself professionally and manage my issues.

"KPL has made me a better person and a better player." This sense of professionalism perhaps has a lot to do with the fact he is a soldier.

Mudde had to be cleared by the UPDF High Command before transferring to Kenya.

 He joined Sofapaka two years ago from military side Simba FC and has emerged as one of the best talents in the KPL.

While in Kenya, soldier footballers are not allowed to play professionally away from their military sides, Mudde is not only playing professionally, but also outside his country.

 "It took a lot of negotiations. Signing a player from a military side is not like signing any other player. The Uganda government had to be convinced of how the interests of the player and his welfare was going to be taken care of,” says Sofapaka president Elly Kalekwa.