Uganda’s growing investment in youth sport has taken a remarkable leap forward, following the successful introduction of Futsal into the 2025 Uganda Secondary Schools Sports Association (USSSA) Ball Games II. The historic integration was made possible through a groundbreaking partnership between USSSA and the Futsal Association of Uganda (FAU), led by its President, Mr. Jjunju Hamza.
For the first time ever, Futsal featured as a competitive discipline during the USSSA Ball Games II, held at St. Peter’s College Tororo and Tororo Girls’ Secondary School. But what truly set this tournament apart was the bold decision to play the game on grass—a strategic innovation that has now become the talk of the international school sports community.
Justus Mugisha, the USSSA President and FUFA’s First Vice President, is full of praise for the FAU leadership, describing the collaboration as a “masterclass” in innovation and strategic planning.
“I watched with joy as students from across Uganda embraced Futsal during its first outing at the Ball Games II. What impressed me most was the decision to adapt Futsal to grass pitches. This is an award-winning move—one that allows the sport to be played in nearly every school, regardless of facilities,” Mugisha remarked.
The development has received international attention. While attending the International School Sport Federation (ISF) summit in Rabat, Morocco, Mugisha shared Uganda’s unique adaptation of Futsal with fellow global delegates.
“My colleagues here in Rabat were amazed. They all agreed that this was a game-changing approach—something Uganda should be proud of,” he added.
Building on the momentum, Uganda is now preparing to take part in the ISF World Schools Futsal Championship scheduled to take place in Brazil from November 11th to 18th, 2025. The immediate task is to identify two school teams—one boys’ team and one girls’ team—that will proudly fly the national flag at the prestigious global event.
However, participation in the Brazil championship will be on a cost-sharing basis, with selected schools expected to meet part of their travel costs. Mugisha believes this approach, already successful in other sports like racket games, beach soccer, woodball, and mind games, will also work for Futsal.
“This model has allowed us to grow several emerging sports, and Futsal is now positioned to take this cooperation model even higher. With determination and smart partnerships like this one with FAU, we are redefining the future of school sport in Uganda.”
As the sport continues to spread across Uganda’s education landscape, the FAU-USSSA collaboration is being hailed as a beacon of grassroots innovation—one that could inspire similar moves across the continent and beyond.