Sports and soccer betting banned in Uganda, hit or miss?

“As far as the President is concerned, the dilemma that young people are facing is choosing between hard work and betting, so much that removing one will inevitably work for the other.”

— Simiso Shabangu, FirstTouch Africa

When the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni tweeted that Uganda will be banning sports betting by not issuing new licenses for betting companies nor renewing old ones, he got a “Praise the Lord” from religious leaders and skepticism from economists. According to the President, there are a couple of justifications for this directive and we cannot dispute that. However, the effect of an action is not always as noble as the intention of it. Will this decision yield the anticipated results?

Why was it done?

The directive seemingly stemmed from the President’s best interest for the youth. According to him, sports betting is the reason why most people are diverted from the core value of hard work and lie around idle. As far as the President is concerned, the dilemma that young people are facing is choosing between hard work and betting, so much that removing one will inevitably work for the other. Such an incredible dichotomy of choices! Even more importantly, the President touched on how most of these companies are foreign owned. After all the betting that takes place, they take most of the profits outside of the country which drains the economy. This is a common phenomenon amongst African states and it really does need to be curbed.

Hit or Miss?  

Uganda supporters cheer ahead of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations group D football match between Egypt and Uganda in Port-Gentil on January 21, 2017. / AFP / Justin TALLIS

(Jan. 20, 2017 - Source: AFP)

The government of Uganda is estimated to lose about Ush50 billion  (about U$13.6M) yearly from these companies if they go ahead with implementing this ban. This is probably way less than what these companies then take out of Uganda annually, but it sure does contribute to the welfare of some Ugandans. Should government then let go of it under a ban?  Mr Albert Baine, a tax expert from Global Taxation Services Ltd, said that in as much as government should care about the social impact of activities that happen inside the country, it should also ensure that does not come at a financial loss. This then proves that if the outcome is to satisfy both criteria, then a ban is probably not the best way to go about it. There is a way through which regulation could be crafted such that financial and social impact are maximised.

Betting is also one other way that adds excitement and commitment to sports, especially football. When people do not just associate a team with colours, but with their money, they are most likely going to attend the soccer matches or stream the game. They will be religiously following the team that they have sided with during a bet. This is the kind of support and attention that sports especially in Africa need. However, we agree that interest should not come at the expense of other things like academics and work. This then means that people need to be sensitised on the dangers of gambling addiction, which is something that companies can take up as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).  Because a ban comes with a blanket wipe out, even of things that might be beneficial, like commitment to sports, it maybe a miss in some cases.

Mr Paul Lakuma, a researcher at the Economic Policy Research Centre also raised a point about how this ban could lead to the eruption of a gambling black market. If it is surely an addiction, people will not be stopped by legislation from practising it. Instead, they will find means to do it outside of the government’s eyes. This will even lead to a higher economic drain as government cannot account for this underground money and possibly lose tax from it.

Conclusion

What then shall I say, I am of the opinion that the President’s concerns are genuine and should be taken seriously. However, a ban seems to be quite a drastic approach. There are softer ways to deal with all the problems that he has rightly identified.

2018 Women's AFCON: 3 Lessons to learn from COSAFA 2018

“The players were exposed to so much pressure as the coach needed to trim the squad from 29 players to 21 players as per the requirements of the tournament. That, on its own heightened the pressure as the team members needed to prove that they are worthy of retainment.”

— Simiso Shabangu, FirstTouch Africa

When South Africa decided to call herself using the name of a region, the other countries in the Southern part of Africa then seemed to be invisible. Even those that know about this region easily associate it with Nelson Mandela.  Fortunately, the COSAFA Women’s Championship showed that Southern Africa has more incredible things to offer. This September, the tournament which is organised by the Council of Southern Africa Football Association gathered the 10 teams from Southern Africa. They also invited Uganda and Cameroon not miss out on what the South has to offer.

Our interest is beyond the wins that were accomplished here but it is deeply in the three lessons that we could derive from from the battle that these ladies fought on the field. Lessons difficult to ignore as the 2018 Total Women’s Africa Cup of Nations looms.

1. In the modern day of GOATs, the old adage of teamwork prevails

Desiree Scott of Canada and Andisiwe Mgcoyi of South Africa contest for the ball during the Women's Football first round Group F Match of the London 2012 Olympic Games between Canada and South Africa, at City of Coventry Stadium on July 28, 2012 in Coventry, England.

(July 27, 2012 - Source: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images Europe)

The tournament reminded us that if anyone is to succeed in anything they do, they should leverage the strength of other people. This was a lesson that was echoed by winner of the player of the match award in the final, Kaylin Swart, who was quoted saying “I want to say thank you especially to the girls as we could not have done it without each other..and honestly, it is a team effort.” South Africa (Banyana Banyana) walked away from the tournament with the 2018 COSAFA title and they accredited that to the fact that they were willing to close the gap for each other and most importantly, were ready to accept each other’s lesser strengths which is basically what teamwork is about.

2.  Competition Brings Out the Best in You

Ideally, this tournament is meant for the Southern part of the region, but as mentioned two nations were brought in as guest nations. They were Cameroon and Uganda. These two teams outdid the Southern teams with Cameron making it to the finals while Uganda snatched the bronze medal. Had these teams not been here, countries like Zambia would have ended at a higher position. These guest nations came in for the competition, revealing to sides like She-polopolo of Zambia that that they still had something to work on. Sometimes we dislike competition but it is losing to teams like the Cameronian team that will enable Southern African  teams to work on their weaknesses in preparation of the 2018 Total Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.

3. Status Cannot Substitute Hard Work

Andisiwe Mgcoyi attends the Team South Africa Training Session at Sportschule Hennef on July 11, 2012 in Hennef, Germany.

(July 10, 2012 - Source: Mathis Wienand/Getty Images Europe)

More than any other country, Banyana Banyana has won the Women’s COSAFA Cup a record, five times. They walked into the tourney as undisputable favorites also boasting of Olympic Games appearances. With such an impressive track record, one could think that South Africa should have rested and not worked as hard in the 2018 edition. However, ahead of the tournament, the Banyana Banyana coach called the team to a gruelling training camp in Johannesburg from the 5th to the 10th of September. The players were exposed to so much pressure as the coach needed to trim the squad from 29 players to 21 players as per the requirements of the tournament. That, on its own heightened the pressure as the team members needed to prove that they are worthy of retainment. The hard work invested into this tournament paid off for South Africa as they were able to defend the title. Surely, yesterday’s victories do not guarantee today’s victory if hard work is eliminated from the process.

2018 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations Qualifiers: Kenya draws first blood at home against Uganda

The qualifiers for this year’s continental showpiece of women football kicked off in Machakos, Kenya on Wednesday. Lilian Adera’s 53rd-minute strike was enough to secure a one-goal advantage for the Harambee Starlets over the Crested Cranes ahead of the second leg to be played this Sunday at Star Times Stadium, Kampala.

The right-back, Adera, curled in a beautiful cross into the box which flicked past Crested Cranes’ goalkeeper, Ruth Aturo. The overall winner of this tie will face Equatorial Guinea in the final qualification stage with a victory guaranteeing a spot at the finals to be held in Ghana from 17 November to the 1st of December 2018.

In other fixtures, Ethiopia thrashed Libya 8-0 away from home in a first leg match and Tanzania drew 3-3 with Zambia.

All the qualification matches and results are listed below:

4 April: Senegal v Algeria
10 April: Algeria v Senegal

FT: Libya 0 Ethiopia 8
10 April: Ethiopia v Libya

4 April: Congo v Central African Republic
10 April: Central African Republic v Congo

FT: Kenya 1 Uganda 0
8 April: Uganda v Kenya

FT: Tanzania 3 Zambia 3
10 April: Zambia v Tanzania

5 April: Namibia v Zimbabwe
TBC: Zimbabwe v Namibia

6 April: Morocco v Ivory Coast
TBC: Ivory Coast v Morocco

7 April: Sierra Leone v Mali
10 April: Mali v Sierra Leone

7 April: Burkina Faso v Gambia
10 April: Gambia v Burkina Faso

6 April: Lesotho v Swaziland
TBC: Swaziland v Lesotho

Uganda: CAF Commissions FUFA Beach Soccer Arena ahead of the regionals in May

The CAF Committee for Development of Futsal and Beach Soccer Committee were in Uganda for a historic one-day meeting, the first to be conducted outside its Cairo, Egypt headquarters on Monday, 26 March. Amongst other things, the delegation discussed the preparations for the third edition of the Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations Egypt 2018, Youth Olympics Futsal Tournament and bidding process for the Futsal Africa Cup of Nations 2020.

The delegation then signed off with a visit to the venue for the inaugural CECAFA Beach Soccer Challenge scheduled to take place in May featuring the east African nations. The proposed three-acre facility at Kitubulu on the shores of Lake Victoria in Entebbe is currently under construction and the project is earmarked at $200 000 and expected to have a 2000 sitting capacity.