Uganda’s oldest football club, Express, has found an unlikely lifeline in its fans after months of financial turmoil threatened to break the spirit of the Red Eagles.
With players going nearly six months without pay and transport allowances, a group of committed supporters has rallied to keep the team afloat—at least for now.
Led by Julius Bakunda, the chairman of Express Fans, the group visited the team’s training session at Hamz Stadium, Nakivubo, on Tuesday with basic supplies and a pledge to provide daily transport allowances to players for the coming week.
The gesture comes at a time when morale at the club is at an all-time low following a 7-0 drubbing by Kitara in December and six losses in their last nine Uganda Premier League matches.
“We had a meeting with fellow fans and resolved to come and lift the spirits of our players,” said Bakunda.
“That loss to Kitara really broke them, and we felt the need to step in and offer some support.”
The support seems to have had an immediate impact. For the first time in days, the entire playing squad and technical team showed up for training, a major turnaround from last Monday when players boycotted the session in protest over unpaid wages and allowances.
“This week, we’ve started with action. We brought them essentials and will continue giving transport until the Mbale Heroes game next Wednesday. This way, the players can focus on football again,” Bakunda added.
Express, seven-time league champions and ten-time Uganda Cup winners, are currently in one of the darkest periods in their decorated history.
Their latest defeat came at the hands of Maroons FC in Luzira last Saturday, a 1-0 loss that deepened concerns about both their performance and internal management.
Despite the chaos, fans remain hopeful that their intervention will rekindle both the team’s performance and the broader support of the Express faithful.
“We need the team to perform well so that fans also get the morale to come and watch games again,” Bakunda said, urging the football fraternity to rally behind the team.
Express will host league leaders Vipers this Friday in Nakivubo, before traveling to Mbale to face Mbale Heroes on April 16.
Whether this fan-driven effort can spark a revival on the pitch remains to be seen, but for now, it has at least brought a glimmer of hope to a club that sorely needs it.
