Uganda Cranes christened the newly constructed Hoima City Stadium with a 1-0 victory over Libya on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, in the first-ever international match played at the new facility.
The historic fixture marked the official opening of Hoima City Stadium as an international football venue, with the Cranes giving the home crowd a winning start by securing three points in their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
Allan Okello's 45th-minute delivery from a free-kick on the left wing was headed into the net by debutant Arnold Vula in first half stoppage time to give Uganda victory and ensure the stadium's first major football occasion ended in celebration.
The result gives Uganda four points from their opening two Group H matches, following last week's 1-1 draw against Tunisia in Tunis.
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Uganda Premier League side Kitara, who use the stadium, have hosted Caf fixtures here but this was the first real taste of international football in its purest form.
Uganda started strongly and controlled much of the first half as they looked to build on their positive result in Tunisia.
Their pressure paid off just before the break when a cross from Allan Okello's free-kick on the left wing was headed into the net in the 45th minute to give the Cranes a 1-0 lead.
The goal gave Uganda an advantage at half-time after a first half in which they had largely dictated play.
Libya returned for the second half with a different approach, enjoying more possession and putting Uganda under increasing pressure.
The visitors dominated much of the second half and forced the Cranes to spend long periods defending their narrow advantage.
Uganda struggled to maintain the control they had shown before the break but held firm to deny Libya an equaliser.
The 1-0 scoreline remained unchanged until the final whistle, giving Uganda three points in their first home qualifier of the campaign and marking the opening of the Hoima City Stadium era with a victory.
The other Group H match saw Tunisia and Botswana draw 2-2, leaving both sides on two points after their opening two matches, while Libya remain on one point.
Elsewhere, Rwanda made it two wins from two in Group K after beating Cape Verde 2-1 away, following their 3-1 victory over Liberia in their opening match.
Morocco maintained a perfect start in Group A with a 2-0 victory over Lesotho, while Senegal secured their first win under Patrick Vieira by beating Ethiopia 1-0.
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Egypt recorded one of the biggest wins of the day, thrashing South Sudan 5-0 in Juba, with Omar Marmoush scoring twice after Mostafa Zico opened the scoring.
Mozambique also recorded a convincing victory, beating Sudan 4-1, while Comoros secured their first win of the qualifiers with a 1-0 victory over Namibia.
In Group I, Algeria came from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Burundi, while Madagascar and Tanzania shared the points in a 1-1 draw in Group L.
Uganda now have four points from their opening two qualifiers and remain unbeaten as their Group H campaign continues.
