FUFA and FIFA are rolling out the Women’s Football Campaign to Northern Uganda next month, with festivals lined up in Lira and Gulu cities from 3rd to 5th September 2026.
Under the Women’s Football Development Programme first launched in West Nile in 2023, the tour will open with a Coaches’ Workshop in Lira City on 3rd September before the main festival in Lira the following day.
Gulu City then hosts the closing leg on 5th September 2026, mirroring the successful editions held in West Nile in 2023 and Bukedea in 2024.
The tacticians behind the campaign have zeroed in on grassroots development, talent identification and community engagement, much as the earlier editions did.
Girls aged 8-10, 11-12 and 13-14 will get their run through small-sided games, skills challenges and fun football drills, alongside awareness sessions on safeguarding, gender equality and career pathways in the women’s game.
Daniel Ekaju, General Secretary of the Northern Region Football Association, is the contact point for team registration, which is free of charge.
What is on the schedule?
- 3rd September 2026 — Coaches’ Workshop, Lira City
- 4th September 2026 — Main festival, Lira City
- 5th September 2026 — Festival, Gulu City
Why does this matter for the Crested Cranes pipeline?
The Northern Uganda leg is built to grow girls’ participation, raise the profile of the women’s game and plant a sustainable development pathway in a region that has not yet been fully tapped.
For a Crested Cranes set-up always on the hunt for fresh talent beyond the central belt, these festivals are the kind of grassroots touch that decide who turns up at the next national team camp.
Watch the Highlights
Source: FUFA
