USSSA Backs Down, Pushes Elite School Games to End of February

By Kayiira Jackson 
The Uganda Secondary Schools Sports Association (USSSA) has bowed to pressure from schools and rescheduled the seventh edition of the Elite Secondary School Games, pushing the competition to 26th February–1st March 2026.
The games had initially been slated for 13th–16th February 2026, but concerns raised by schools over inadequate preparation time following the reopening of schools forced the organisers to revise the calendar.
According to Mugisha Christopher Banage, the USSSA Chief Executive Officer, the decision was taken after it became clear that many schools would struggle to adequately prepare their teams, as athletes are expected to report back to school on 10th February.
“In order to allow schools enough time for preparations after the athletes report on the 10th February, because Elite games are a precursor activity to give opportunity to schools to try out their players before the championships begin,” Banage explained.
The Elite Games bring together the top eight schools per discipline from the 2025 National Secondary Schools Championships, serving as a build-up competition ahead of the main championship season.
Disciplines to be contested include football, volleyball, basketball 5×5, basketball 3×3, rugby 7s and netball. All disciplines will feature both boys and girls, except netball, which will be contested by girls only.
The championship remains invitational, open only to qualified schools, with participation restricted to bona fide students in accordance with the 2025/2026 USSSA General Rules and Regulations. USSSA has also provided timelines for registration and allowances for replacement of schools where necessary.
Under the financial requirements, schools will pay a participation fee of Shs300,000 per team, online registration fees of Shs3,000 per participant, and accreditation fees of Shs5,000 per participant. Feeding and accommodation will cost Shs15,000 per day for each athlete and official for the three-day competition.
The previous edition of the Elite Secondary School Games was held at St. Joseph of Nazareth, Kavule, Mpigi, in February 2025. Other former hosts include Jinja Secondary School, Old Kampala Secondary School and Elite High School Entebbe.
At the 2025 edition, Buddo SS emerged as one of the dominant schools, winning netball, basketball 3×3 (boys and girls) and basketball 5×5 (boys and girls). Other champions included Bukedea Comprehensive School (Volleyball Boys), St. Elizabeth (Volleyball Girls), Jinja Progressive Academy (Football Boys), St. Noa Girls (Football Girls), Gombe SS (Handball Girls), Bombo Army SS (Handball Boys), Busoga College Mwiri (Rugby 7s Boys) and Nkoma SS (Rugby 7s Girls).