Surface Grass Capacity 45,202 Phone +256 704 830309 | Address Kampala, Uganda Opened 1997 Construction cost 36 million USD | |
Full name Mandela National Stadium Former names Namboole National Stadium Location Bweyogerere
Kira Municipality
Central Region
Uganda Main contractors Chinese construction company Teams Uganda national football team, Uganda Revenue Authority SC, SC Victoria University, Police FC, Kiira Young FC Similar Nakivubo Stadium, Kasubi Tombs, Uganda Museum, Rubaga Cathedral, Mutesa II Stadium | ||
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Mandela National Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Uganda. It is named after the South African icon, Nelson Mandela.
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Location
The stadium is located on Namboole Hill in Bweyogerere Ward, Kira Municipality, Wakiso District. The stadium is approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi), by road, east of the central business district of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city. The coordinates of Mandela National Stadium are:0°20'52.0"N, 32°39'33.0"E (Latitude:0.347778; Longitude:32.659167).
Overview
Mandela National Stadium is mainly used for soccer matches, although other sports such as athletics are also practised. The stadium has a seating capacity of 45,202. The stadium is home to the Uganda national football team, known as the Uganda Cranes.
A committee of the Ugandan parliament reported in 2015 that the stadium was on the verge of financial collapse, claiming that the stadium had suffered from more than a decade of "mismanagement and wanton abuse" and incurred losses totaling UGX:3.6 billion. Running the stadium profitably in a private-public partnership arrangement remains a challenge.
History
The stadium was built with a grant of US$36 million from the People's Republic of China (PRC). Originally it was called Namboole Stadium, getting its name from the hill on which it was built. It is now officially called Mandela National Stadium, named after the former South African president, Nelson Mandela. It was opened in 1997 with a concert by Lucky Dube, a reggae artist from South Africa. The stadium was refurbished in 2010-11, with a US$2.8 million grant from the PRC.