Kampala, Uganda: The Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) has provisionally suspended five individuals from all football-related activities over their alleged involvement in a match-fixing scheme linked to a Uganda Premier League match between Kitara FC and Express FC played on December 21, 2024.
Those suspended include former Uganda national football team and Kampala Capital City Authority FC midfielder Mike Mutyaba, Express FC chief executive officer Ashraf Miiro, goalkeeper Emmanuel Kalyowa, and two other individuals identified as Mbazira Ashraf and Katende Ivan.
The decision was taken by the Investigatory Chamber of the FUFA Ethics and Disciplinary Committee, which said the suspensions will remain in force as investigations into the alleged manipulation of the match continue.
According to FUFA, the investigation was initiated after the federation received a betting alert from FIFA highlighting suspicious betting activity linked to the match.
“After the match, FUFA was informed by FIFA via a betting report that the game had been fixed for betting purposes, with prior knowledge that Express FC would lose and concede at least five goals,” FUFA said in a statement released Thursday.
The alert reportedly pointed to irregular betting patterns, suggesting that the outcome of the game had been manipulated to benefit gambling interests.
Mutyaba coordinated the scheme
Preliminary findings indicate that Mutyaba allegedly coordinated the scheme together with Katende, who investigators say had previously been linked to match-fixing probes in Ugandan football.
According to FUFA, Mutyaba is believed to have introduced Katende to Express FC CEO Miiro, after which the trio allegedly agreed to manipulate the match result.
“The preliminary investigations have so far indicated that Mutyaba Mike coordinated the match-fixing with Katende Ivan,” FUFA said.
Investigators also discovered that betting accounts linked to Katende placed wagers on the match through a Tanzanian betting company.
However, FUFA said the betting company reportedly blocked the payout after detecting irregular betting patterns and suspected fraud.
The investigation further suggests that players were recruited to influence events during the match.
FUFA said goalkeeper Emmanuel Kalyowa and Mbazira Ashraf were allegedly enlisted to manipulate actions on the field during the game.
According to the federation, Mutyaba allegedly took advantage of the absence of Express FC head coach Badru Kaddu on the day of the match and assumed technical responsibilities.
Investigators suspect this situation may have been used to influence match decisions and coordinate the alleged scheme.
FUFA said the matter has now been referred to the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) to support the probe as authorities work to establish the full scope of the alleged match-fixing network.
“To safeguard the integrity of the game, the Investigatory Chamber has provisionally suspended Mike Mutyaba, Ashraf Miiro, Emmanuel Kalyowa, Mbazira Ashraf and Katende Ivan from all football-related activities pending disciplinary proceedings,” FUFA said.
The federation noted that further disciplinary action could follow depending on the outcome of the investigations.
The case marks one of the most serious match-fixing allegations in recent Ugandan football history, raising concerns about betting-related manipulation in domestic competitions.
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