Top-flight league at 56: how it has shaped up over time

November 9, 2024, marked 56 years since the inception of the domestic top-flight league.

On November 9, 1968, the National Football League (NFL) officially launched, aiming to expand the game across the nation and 56 years on, the 2024/2025 season has gone eight rounds so far, with KCCA FC leading the table by one point from second-placed Vipers SC.

Question is; how has the league evolved to be where we are today?

HUMBLE BEGINNING

The tournament owes its humble beginning to four men; Rev Polycarp Kakooza Kiwanuka, Henry Balamaze Lwanga, Joseph ‘Jolly Joe’ Kiwanuka and Hassan Sunderani, who in 1967 put their heads together to start the league. Before the NFL came into existence, there was a tournament known as the Kampala and District League (KDL), but this only used to be played by teams in what is now known as Greater Kampala.

Balamaze Lwanga, a veteran sports administrator, headed the National Football League organizing committee. When the league was introduced, its main objectives were to engage many skilled players across the nation.

It also aimed to motivate all district sports associations, particularly those located outside Kampala, to increase their enthusiasm for the game of football on top of identifying potential players for the national team. Eight clubs participated in the first league round on November 9, 1968; four of them; Prisons, Army, Express and Coffee were from Kampala. The upcountry teams included Jinja, Masaka and Mbale.

Interestingly, the NFL concurrently ran the KDL and the top-flight league, allowing players to participate in both events and to represent one team in each category.

At the end of the season, Prisons [now Maroons] emerged victorious, having lost only four points out of a total of 28 points in 14 matches. The star-studded Luzira-based side successfully retained the title the following season. In 1971, KDL was replaced with a new Second Division League, which was segmented in four zones across the country.

HIGHS AND LOWS IN THE LEAGUE

Since the formation of the NFL, the highest number of clubs featured in a single season was 22, which occurred in the 1999 season, while the lowest number was eight for both the 1968 and 1998 seasons.

LOOKING BACK

Overall, the league has achieved greater success than the founders may have anticipated. Positively, it has provided an opportunity for emerging talent to shine in the top-flight and it has also aided the local federation in selecting players for the national teams.

In the 56 years, the league has produced 10 different winners. SC Villa (17), KCCA (13), Express (7), Vipers SC (6), URA (4), Simba (2), Prisons (2), Nile (1), Police (1) and UCB (1).

The league has produced top players such as Jimmy Kirunda, Polly Ouma, Phillip Omondi, Denis Obua, Paul Hasule, Magid Musisi, Issa Sekatawa, Moses Nsereko and John Latigo, among others.

The league has attracted hundreds of clubs from across the country, thereby contributing to the expansion of the sports infrastructure. It is the top-flight league, which has helped to expose players to the international market, and we have seen a number of them join the paid ranks.

The establishment of the SuperDivision in 1982 and the Fufa Big League in August, 2009 have undoubtedly elevated the league’s standards. The infamous ban of Express FC in 1977 by the state stands out as one of the lowest moments. What’s more, the security instability in the country prevented the league’s conclusion in 1972.

Despite not finishing the 1973 league, Simba, who was leading the league log, emerged as the winner. Similar incidents occurred in the 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 seasons when the Covid-19 pandemic forced the league’s abandonment.

The league has also seen once mighty teams fade into oblivion. These include Coffee, UCB, Nile Breweries, Lint, NIC, BOU, Spear Motors, Simba, UEB, Nytil and Uganda Airlines, among others.

It is also worth noting that whereas the league used to draw full stadiums in the seventies, eighties and nineties, the situation soured in the 2000s, especially after the infamous Arrow Boys scandal of 2003. From then on, most matches took place in half-empty venues.

The lack of professionalism, the small package gotten from corporate sponsorship and Fufa’s rigidity to leave clubs manage the league are among the challenges that need to be fixed.

bzziwa@observer.ug