Overview:
After the final whistle; super charged players, coaches and other officials jumped over, sprinted, hugged and danced off in the dressing rooms chanting the name of the FUFA President Magogo with the overnight celebrations extended at the lavish Lydex Hotel in Rabat city.
The Uganda Under 17 national team, hitherto tagged as The Cubs celebrate wildly after confirming their ticket to the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup due in Qatar later this year.
After the final whistle; super charged players, coaches and other officials jumped over, sprinted, hugged and danced off in the dressing rooms chanting the name of the FUFA President Magogo with the overnight celebrations extended at the lavish Lydex Hotel in Rabat city.
The development came after attaining qualification at the expense of Ghana Black Starlets following a nerve cracking 8-7 post match penalty victory at the Mohammed VI Complex pitch 10 on Saturday, 23rd May 2026.
This followed a 2-all draw in normal time, with Uganda rallying from behind twice. The first incident witnessed skipper Owen Mukisa score direct from a corner kick (an Olympico) and the second was rather a calm finish from 12 yards when Arafat Ibanda struck a penalty on 90 minutes.
Uganda U-17 head coach Laryea Kingston was very excited alongside the members of the technical team, players, officials and a handful of fans during the floodlit duel in Rabat city.
“We are there. We are in the World Cup now” Kingston who ironically hails from Ghana sighed with excitement.
Diligence:
Kingston cites diligence from the entire team having brought down Ghana, a continental heavy weight.
“It came out the hard way. Playing against Ghana is not an easy thing.” He pointed out.
“We took the game to them but they got the goal. Throughout the 90 minutes, we were using the ball very well. I give credit to the boys.” He appreciated.
Game plan strategy, believe and right mentality:
Before every game, coaches and their back room staff sit down to plan for the game ahead. They discuss tactics, approach and at times spy on the opposition.
This is exactly that Uganda Cubs docket perfected. They had a game plan that they preached to the players who obeyed the instructions.
“They (the players) stuck to the game plan throughout the 90 minutes.They believed by sticking to the game plan. Ghana caught us by counterattack and that is how they got their two goals. Even when we were 1-2 down, we stuck by the game plan. We tried to change the formation from 3-4-3 to the normal 4-3-3 and after that we dominated play.” Kingston highlighted in the post match interview.
We believe in what we are doing. We believe in the style of play. The boys stuck to it and we started to create a lot of chances. We had a feeling that we could push something out. The ultimate goal was to be in the World Cup and we achieved it. We have played the strongest countries in Africa; Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Ghana; This is why I give credit to the boys. The technical team did well. The support from FUFA has been amazing. We had a strong feeling that we could make it. Now we are in Qatar. We go back, we have to enjoy now and come back strongly. We are still developing, still improving. We shall come back together and make sure that we prepare the boys well. Thanks to everyone that helped to be in this position. As head of technical team, we appreciate every support from Ugandans. We shall make sure we put a smile on your face.
Laryea Kingston, Uganda U-17 head coach
With the FIFA World Cup U-17 ticket now attained, focus surely turns to the preparations on how to assemble a formidable and competitive team.
