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Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga is one of the most inspirational people I have as a friend.
He is so meticulous in his approach to things that he always spots gaps where you think all is well. I have encountered this on a number of occasions while heading the organization of the Buganda Royal Regatta.
Owing to Uganda’s dismal exit from the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations, a few days ago on X, he delved into our failure. He noted that not only is The Cranes name not inspirational for a national team, the teams lacks identity and that government agencies should be left to sponsoring clubs, not owning clubs.
Most importantly, he provided solutions and the post attracted a lot of feedback. The Katikkiro literally spoke my mind about the identity crisis of the national team. What we call a national team is actually a collection of individuals with different backgrounds that lack the much-needed camaraderie to make them a unit.
This problem, though mostly blamed on Fufa, actually cuts across our football structures. The stark truth is this; The Cranes do not suffer from a lack of talent, but from a critical deficit of soul. Our national team is a collection of individuals wearing the same jersey, not a brotherhood fighting for the same cause.
Just imagine, our best player on the team is Allan Okello but he starts from the bench most times. Matters are not helped that he always finds himself without any peers when he is subbed on and was just one of only six locally-based players on the Afcon squad.
While the world’s best teams Such as France, Belgium and Germany harness diversity as a superpower, we have allowed our differences such as ‘loyalty,’ foreign-club experience and personal ambition to determine who plays for the national team.
I have my reservations for coach Paul Put but the solution is not merely a new coach or change of tactics, but the urgent forging of a unifying national narrative as Katikkiro noted.
At Afcon, the evidence was there for everyone to see. We saw a team that collapses under pressure, that lacks coordinated urgency, where celebrations were isolated and blame was deflected.
To me, this is not a footballing problem; it is a spiritual one. We have players from all over the world yet we had no common flag to rally under except the literal one. That is not enough.
Uganda ought to learn from the global game. Did France’s 1998 “Black, Blanc, Beur” squad win because they were simply the most skilled? No. They won because they were welded together by a powerful story; a modern, inclusive France that was bigger than any one player.
Most recently, I also noticed that Morocco’s 2022 heroes that reached the World Cup semifinal did not just play for Morocco; they played for Africa, for the Arab world, for every underdog. They had a mission.
So, all football stakeholders need to realize the need to drum up patriotism for the national team. Players should not be seen as mercenaries on a mission. As the Katikkiro suggests, there should be that unique identifier of the national team to unite all Ugandans.
Nigerians are the masters of this art in Africa and the way they rally behind their national team makes me envious. I appreciate the fact that Fufa has previously tried to have a national team anthem but the trick is yet to succeed.
So, the first step to lift the national team spirit may be to forge the inclusivity of our players to feel Ugandan. Honestly, it doesn’t make sense that we have players such as Elio Capradossi, Toby Sibbick, Uche Ikpeazu and Melvyn Lorenzen who have never really associated with the ordinary fan.
Time is now to Ugandanise them if we are to move forward as a unit.
The author is a football investor and SC Villa President Emeritus.
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