Casablanca, Morocco: Uganda’s U17 national football team, the Cubs, kept their FIFA U17 World Cup dream alive after battling to a dramatic 2-2 draw against Ivory Coast in a tense and VAR-filled Group B AFCON U17 showdown on Tuesday night.
The result was enough to keep the Uganda national under-17 football team on the path to the playoffs for a return to the FIFA U17 World Cup Qatar 2026 despite missing out on automatic qualification spots.
Uganda twice came from behind in a match dominated by controversial VAR interventions, late drama, and high tension as the Cubs refused to surrender under pressure.
Drebo Koudougnon and Souleymane Kone scored for Ivory Coast, while Henry Muhoozi and Arafat Ibanda found the net for Uganda in a thrilling contest that saw the Cubs finish third in Group B with four points.
Uganda had entered the decisive encounter needing a strong result after opening their campaign with a commanding 3-0 victory over the Democratic Republic of the Congo before suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to Cameroon.
Against Ivory Coast, the Cubs once again showed resilience.
The Ivorians took the lead through Drebo Koudougnon after a lengthy VAR review confirmed the goal, but Uganda responded before halftime through Henry Muhoozi, whose brilliant free-kick restored parity.
The second half produced even more controversy after Ivory Coast escaped a potential red card following a dangerous challenge on Uganda’s Trevor Mubiru.
After another VAR review, the referee ruled there had been no serious foul play.
Souleymane Kone later restored Ivory Coast’s lead with a goal that was initially ruled out for offside before VAR overturned the decision and awarded it.
With Uganda staring at defeat, the Cubs launched a late fightback.
Deep into added time, Trevor Mubiru was brought down inside the penalty area. Although the referee initially awarded a goal kick, VAR intervened once again and Uganda were awarded a penalty.
Arafat Ibanda calmly converted from the spot to rescue a crucial point and send Uganda into the playoff round where they will now battle for one of the remaining African qualification slots.
Ivory Coast finished top of Group B with seven points while Cameroon secured second place with six points after defeating DR Congo 1-0.
Both nations automatically qualified for the FIFA U17 World Cup as quarterfinalists.
Uganda, however, remain firmly in the race through the playoff route — a path familiar to the Cubs after they previously defeated The Gambia in playoffs to qualify for their maiden FIFA U17 World Cup appearance.
Africa will have 10 representatives at the FIFA U17 World Cup Qatar 2026. Eight teams qualify automatically through the quarterfinals while the four third-placed teams fight for the remaining two slots.
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