By Wabomba Ronnie
MBALE CITY
Mbale City Industrial Division emerged as champions of the inaugural Bugisu Inter-District Football Tournament after defeating Manafwa District 1-0 in the final held at Mbale Stadium on Tuesday, 26th August 2025.
Kataka FC winger Aka Marcus Christian scored the all-important goal in the second half after the Manafwa goalkeeper failed to firmly hold a saved shot, spilling the ball into Marcus’ path.
Champions Mbale City Industrial Division were awarded a bull and UGX 2 million, while runners-up Manafwa District received UGX 2 million.
In the third-place playoff, Mbale District beat Sironko District 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Mbale District took home UGX 1 million for finishing third, while Sironko District received UGX 500,000 for finishing fourth in a tournament that attracted eight teams.
There were also two corporate curtain-raiser matches: Mbale Referees beat Mbale Police 2-0, while Bungokho Veterans defeated the Mbale Media Team 2-0. Winners in each category received a prize of UGX 500,000.
Faisal Mumali, who played for Sironko District, emerged as the tournament’s top scorer with five goals and was awarded an envelope (cash prize) .
The Bugisu Inter-District Football Tournament, also known as the Dr. Keddi Declaration Cup, was fully sponsored by Dr. Steven Eric Keddi Zuluba, a Ugandan philanthropist and founder of the Keddi Foundation, who graced the final.
During the closing ceremony, Dr. Keddi announced that he would contest for the position of President of Uganda on the Uganda Patriotic Movement (UPM) party ticket.
Issa Musiwa, Chairman of the Eastern Region Football Association, thanked Dr. Keddi for organizing the tournament in the Bugisu Region to keep footballers active during the off-season, when all Ugandan leagues are on break.
Mafuko Latif, the FUFA Delegate for the Eastern Region, requested Dr. Keddi to continue supporting sports financially and reminded him to extend support to the Bugisu Province Team as they prepare for their 2025 FUFA Drum campaign. Bugisu Province is in Group A alongside West Nile and Acholi, and they will begin their group stage campaign by hosting Acholi on 30th August 2025 at Mbale Stadium.
