Kumi, Kaberamaido to host 2025 Teso zonal championships

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The wait is over—Kumi and Kaberamaido districts have been selected to host the 2025 USSSA-Teso Zone Championships.

In recent years, different districts have taken turns hosting the championships. Katakwi hosted Ball Games One in 2022, followed by Kumi in 2023, while Ngora and Serere hosted Ball Games One and Two, respectively, in 2024.

This year, several districts, including Kaberamaido, Kapelebyong, Kumi, and Katakwi, expressed interest in hosting Ball Games One. However, the Teso Zone Secondary Schools Sports Association (TZSSSA) executive has designated Kumi as the host for Ball Games I and Kaberamaido for Ball Games II.

Ball Games I features football and 3X3 basketball for both boys and girls, while Ball Games II includes athletics and other sports such as U16 football, netball, volleyball, handball, and woodball, among others. Ball Games I is held in the first term of the academic year, while Ball Games II takes place in the second term.

In an official communication to the hosting districts and schools, TZSSSA chairperson John Robert Osuu emphasised the need for thorough preparations to ensure a successful tournament.

“Following the inspection done in districts/schools that bid to host ball games 2025 and after an executive meeting, the following schools have been declared hosts of Ball Games I and II,” the letter stipulates.

Ball Games I (football championship) will take place in Kumi district at Bishop Maraka College and Wiggins Secondary School, while Ball Games II will be held in Kaberamaido district at Kaberamaido Secondary School and St Thomas Girls’ SS.

“We call upon the successful districts or schools that have qualified to host to adequately prepare for these games,” Osuu stated in his letter.

Francis Atubo, chairperson of the Kaberamaido Secondary Schools Sports Association, noted that they had initially bid for Ball Games I but accepted the final decision of TZSSSA.

Meanwhile, Kaberamaido LC5 chairperson Victor Rex Ekesu welcomed the opportunity to host but expressed a preference for a more balanced allocation that would have seen Kaberamaido host Ball Games I instead.

At the national level, Ball Games I will be hosted by Ngora High School for boys, while Bukedea will host the girls’ competition.

Osuu previously stated that the selection of host districts is no longer based on a rotational system but rather on the availability of suitable facilities.