CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers – Uganda Hippos Retain Championship
2 min readCECAFA Zonal Qualifiers – Uganda Hippos Retain Championship
Saturday – Uganda U-20 National Team, also known as the Hippos, have won the CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers after edging South Sudan 2-1 at Hilal Stadium on Friday evening.
Issa Bugembe and Titus Ssematimba canceled out South Sudan’s early goal in the first half.
South Sudan broke the deadlock 14 minutes into the game after a sleep-off by the Hippo’s defence.
Uganda leveled the tie eight minutes later through Issa Bugembe to bring halftime to a close.
Titus Ssematimba made it two for the Hippos at the hour mark.
Uganda managed to hold on to bring home the championship, and we’re Fair Play Team of the Tournament.
Abdu Magada was voted the best goalkeeper of the tournament.
The Uganda Hippos and South Sudan will represent the CECAFA region in the U-20 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2023, Egypt.
About U-20 AFCON 2023
The 2023 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations will be the 17th edition of the Africa U-20 Cup of Nations (24th if tournaments without hosts are included), the biennial international youth football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for players aged 20 and below.
Ghana were the defending champions, having won their 4th title in 2021, but will not defend the title after failing to qualify for the tournament.
The top four teams will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup held in Indonesia later that year.