When Betway ventured into the Ugandan market and opted to sponsor little known side Onduparaka, many eyebrows were raised at the choice of side but the vision was to greatly improve the fortunes of not only the club but the region as a whole. Part of this was to renovate the Greenlight Stadium at the start of the season, with a focus was on making the ground comfortable for the hosts.
Little did we know that 10 months on, the stadium would be hosting the country's oldest cup competition. Now renamed the Betway Greenlight Stadium, the ground was this week confirmed as the host venue of this year's Uganda Cup final. "We toured all the main grounds and found that the ground fitted all the requirements to host the final," revealed Fufa competitions director Ali Mwebe at the federation's press briefing this week. The final is scheduled to take place on May 27.
Sadly, Betway sponsored side Onduparaka will not be among the finalists despite their best efforts as they were eliminated by Sadolin Paints at the quarterfinal stage. Onduparaka first rose to prominence following a Cinderella run in which they ejected then Cup holders SC Villa en route to reaching the final where they lost to Vipers. This year's competition is at the semifinal stage with Express awaiting the winner between KCCA and Police.
The other semifinal however offers the West Nile region another chance to have a team in the final with Big League side Paidha Black Angels playing Sadolin in the other two-legged semifinal later this month. The winner of the competition earns a direct slot to next season's Caf Confederation Cup.