FUFA withdraws Sand Cranes from Africa qualifers
Aug 03, 2016
FUFA claims the schedule is so tight in both timing and expenditure
Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) has withdrawn the national beach soccer team from the 2016 Africa Championship qualifiers citing a busy schedule of the senior football team ; the Uganda Cranes.
The Sand Cranes were due to travel to play Egypt in Cairo on August 28th two days before Uganda hosts Kenya's Harambee Stars here and five days before the AFCON qualifier against Comoros.
At the FUFA weekly press conference in Mengo on Wednesday, the federation's financial director Decolas Kiiza explained that Uganda Cranes will be playing a friendly match, one remaining AFCON qualifier and two World Cup qualifiers in a period of five weeks.
Uganda expects to play a friendly match against Kenya on August 30th in Kampala as the Cranes prepare to face Comoros in their last 2017 AFCON qualifier at Namboole on September 3.
The team will then face Ghana (in Accra) and Congo-Brazzaville (Kampala) in the 2018 World Cup qualifier away on October 3 and November 7, 2016.
"This schedule is so tight in both timing and expenditure. The FUFA executive committee found it logical to withdraw the beach soccer team from their qualifier," Kiiza explained.
Meanwhile, Uganda beach soccer referees Shafic Mugerwa, Ivan Bayige and Muhammad Ssenteza will officiate the Africa Beach soccer championship qualifier match between Tanzania and Ivory Coast in Tanzania, August 28th.