When FUFA courted Michael Ezra to rescue Ugandan football
Athletics and boxing were his preferred beneficiaries, with Ezra even forming bodies to administer them. But football, the nation’s most popular sport, remained curiously untouched by his fortune.
File photo
In March 11, 2004, the Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) was drowning in financial difficulties and went knocking on the doors of flamboyant sports magnate Michael Ezra.
Ezra’s millions had burst onto Uganda’s sports scene like a thunderstorm, surpassing traditional levels of sponsorship.
Athletics and boxing were his preferred beneficiaries, with Ezra even forming bodies to administer them. But football, the nation’s most popular sport, remained curiously untouched by his fortune.
FUFA’s general secretary at the time, Haruna Mawanda, acknowledged Ezra’s reservations about the federation, particularly the widespread accusations of mismanagement and internal wrangles. Yet Mawanda had one heartfelt appeal: for Ezra to directly pay the salary of a foreign coach for the Uganda Cranes—without giving FUFA a single shilling.
“He (Ezra) may have his doubts about the federation like so many other people. But he would have done us a great service if he accepted to pay a foreign coach on his own,” Mawanda said then.
The proposal was clear: about $60,000 a year—$4,000 in monthly salary and another $1,000 for upkeep, including transport and housing. If Ezra agreed, Mawanda argued, FUFA’s financial burden would be significantly eased.
At the time, FUFA was racing against the clock to find a coach capable of leading the Cranes in the qualifiers for the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations and FIFA World Cup. But the biggest challenge lay not in identifying the right candidate, but in persuading Michael Ezra to bankroll the dream.