Denis Musanje
The 2025/26 Uganda Premier League under the new format officially kicked off on Friday, 26th September, 2026 with six matches played on the opening day.
Unlike the previous campaign, this season the league will be played in three rounds as introduced by FUFA.
While appearing on Pitch Side, Vipers SC head coach Belgian Ivan Jacky Minnaert who has had coaching stints in Guinea, South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, Mali, Liberia revealed that he has never witnessed such a league format.
“I have never witnessed such anywhere in the world. In Belgium, we play something like this but differently. We play home and away and then top six fight for the title still playing in a round robin home and away and that is better. It doesn’t matter whether you are 5th or 6th, you don’t care because you have qualified.”
Minnaert whose Vipers SC side along with SC Villa and NEC FC rejected the new league reforms asserts that the new format is unfair.
“But here what I see, if you go to the top six, it can be possible that you can have five away games because in the first round you played five teams at home who have qualified for the top six and this is not normal. Maybe on that thing, they need to change a little bit but this is not for me to have a say.”
“It’s the management that needs to fight for or against it. We as coaches, as players at the end of it, we need to do it on the field.”Said the Belgian as quoted by Kawowo Sports
After securing a place in the final preliminary round of the CAF Champions league, the Venoms are scheduled to face off with Kitara FC at Mandela National Stadium on Saturday.
