Ugandan international footballer Abdu Lumala’s story is one of resilience, passion and the unbreakable human spirit.
From the bustling streets of Mengo Bakuli in Kampala to the grand stadiums of international football, his journey has been shaped by hardship and determination.
Orphaned at a young age and raised by his grandmother, Lumala grew up with unanswered questions about his origins, yet he found solace in the one thing that never abandoned him; football.
Through sheer talent and relentless effort, he turned his childhood escape into a career that would take him across continents, proving that dreams can thrive even in the face of adversity.
But beyond his personal success, Lumala is a man on a mission. Having experienced the struggles of growing up without stability or support, he is now dedicated to using his platform to uplift others.
Through his foundation the Lumala Abdu Youth Impact (LAYI), he is working to empower vulnerable children, providing them with access to education, sports and mentorship.
Whether on the pitch or in refugee camps, Lumala’s impact goes far beyond football; he is building a legacy of hope, proving that where you start in life does not have to define where you end up.
EARLY LIFE
Lumala was born on July 21, 1997 and grew up in Bakuli with his grandmother after the death of his mother when he was just four months old. Unfortunately, Lumala does not know his biological father and all attempts to find him have been futile.
Even though the extended family he grew up in gave him care and love, the emotional scars of abandonment and displacement were etched deep within him, and, as a young boy, Lumala faced the world with an unspoken emptiness not knowing where he truly belonged.
Such feelings of loneliness which were made worse by the death of his grandmother in 2016 would also sometimes take a toll on his football career.
“In football, sometimes you can be judged and insulted by people when they don’t even know how you are doing mentally; though I cannot take that as an excuse for a poor performance, but it plays a very big role. You need to have people behind you who support you genuinely. I have really fought with that for the past 12 years I have been in professional football.
Traveling the world alone with no one looking out for you and I believe if my family was there, I would care less about what people say,” he says.
STARTING FOOTBALL
The extended family which helped raise Lumala is also musician Rickman’s family, and it is a sporting family. It is from witnessing such talented individuals, especially Rickman, that he and other children around Bakuli formed a small football team.
In 2009, Rickman and other children were taken to participate in football tournaments across Europe under the Kampala Kids League (KKL), giving Lumala bragging rights among his peers about how his ‘brother’ was playing football in Europe.
“When they came back, our team in Bakuli got a chance to play against KKL. We played and I had a good game. I was playing right back position and Rickman was passing in my wing and I defended against him so well. The coach of KKL then, Eddie Butindo, picked interest in me and asked me to start training with them,” Lumala says.
In his darkest moments, football was Lumala’s passionate escape. It was through sport that he discovered his identity and worth. His commitment and drive soon caught the attention of local coaches and his talent started to shine.
As he grew, so did his talent and with every victory, he healed a part of his broken spirit. His talent caught local attention early, earning him a place in youth training programs and leading to his selection as an ambassador for MTN’s United Against Malaria campaign in 2010 where he played in prominent youth leagues and won the Fans’ Best Young Player of the Year award in Uganda.
The malaria ambassadorial role gave him a chance to travel to Ethiopia, USA, Belgium, South Africa, attend conferences at the European Union headquarters in Brussels and meet prominent figures such as former South African president Thabo Mbeki and Bishop Desmond Tutu during the 2010 World Cup.
After his primary school at Old Kampala primary school in 2010, Lumala was given a bursary to go study at St Mary’s SS, Kitende where he studied for two years before taking a break for greener pastures in Sweden in 2013.
LIFE IN SWEDEN
When Lumala and his team went to Sweden to play football, he decided to remain there but faced initial challenges including working menial jobs such as washing cars for survival. He later contacted Swedish authorities and filed for asylum and was placed in a small town called Bromölla where he first played football in Sweden’s lower leagues while attending school.
“I went to school and also started playing football in the lower division and that is where people started noticing me. I was scouted to join the junior team of a club called Mjällby AIF in the second division from which I was promoted to the first team and given a junior learning professional contract at 16 years. I then played some more games in the league, caught the eye of many clubs and I was sold to a club called Kalmar FF in Sweden’s top league, the Allsvenskan, for five years,” he says.
PLAYING ON THE NATIONAL TEAM
In 2019, Lumala reached a career milestone by representing Uganda at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt, where he played against top teams including Senegal and Egypt.
He got called to the national team at the beginning of 2019 by the Uganda Cranes coach, then Sebastien Desabre, but he (Lumala) was hesitant about it since at that time in Sweden, he had also been called to join the National Youth team.
“As I was still contemplating on the decision to make, coach Desabre came to Sweden himself and asked me again if I was interested in joining the national team. He then gave me three weeks to decide and join the team at the camp in Abu Dhabi.”
However, Lumala says he didn’t receive a warm welcome to the team; at least not only from some players who had been on the national team before, because they felt like he could take away their playing positions, and also from the technical bench coaches who felt he was still too young to be helpful on the team.
“I just concentrated on giving my best in every training. When we played against Turkmenistan in an international friendly match, I played so well and the coaches liked it. Next, we played against Ivory Coast; a team which was so full of Premier League players but we managed to win 1-0. I again played so well and during the half time break, the technical bench coaches who were skeptical about me at first came to me and told me that the team was now depending on me for a successful match,” he says.
From there, he became one of the strong players in the team and began connecting with other players like Murushid Juuko, Khalid Aucho, Micheal Azira and Ronald Mukiibi and these also pushed him to be a better player on the national team.
He outlines joining the national team as the biggest highlight and happiest moment of his career so far and wishes his grandmother were still alive to witness it. His performances in Afcon led him to sign his life-changing contract with Pyramids FC in Egypt where he reunited with coach Sébastien Desabre.
LUMALA ABDU YOUTH IMPACT
Rooted in his own experiences of overcoming hardships, Lumala has made it his mission to uplift underprivileged youth and contribute to social development through multiple impactful projects.
Parallel to his sports career, Lumala has for the longest time been doing school fees charity to his friends and upcoming footballers and funding initiatives on an individual level until 2024 when he founded the Lumala Abdu Youth Impact (LAYI).
Here, he is leading a not-for-profit movement focused on youth empowerment, health advocacy and refugee support. Under LAYI, he implements programs supporting young athletes, encouraging them to use sports as a vehicle for growth, education and health awareness.
Under his guidance, the organization provides scholarships for talented young athletes, funds health and hygiene workshops in local schools, and organizes sports tournaments to encourage youth engagement in constructive activities.
LAYI’s ongoing projects include distributing mosquito nets to prevent malaria, promoting mental health awareness and providing young people with critical life skills. Lumala has extended his outreach efforts to refugee camps, recognizing the unique challenges faced by displaced youth.
Through LAYI, he frequently visits refugee settlements to run sports clinics, donate sports gear and mentor young athletes who have been impacted by conflict and displacement. He aims to inspire these young people by offering them hope and a sense of belonging by connecting through sports.
His work has reached hundreds of youth, fostering resilience and optimism amidst difficult circumstances.
“There are many refugees entering Uganda everyday, among them many children. These children love sports but they face challenges like lacking nice pitches, sports wear, training equipment, and they have no trained coaches yet sports is something they can find solace in,” Lumala, who recently visited Kyangwali Refugee Settlement, says.
“When I went to Kyangwali recently, my eyes were opened about the amazing talent which exists there and my visit inspired many of them. You cannot tell me that out of 200 children you cannot find a Kylian Mbappe or Lumala. So, the talent is there; all they need is the necessary support and exposure.”
At Kyangwali, Lumala donated over 200 sports kits ( jerseys, boots, cones and balls) to aspiring young footballers before leading them through drills, training sessions and friendly matches as well as sharing his personal journey with the young refugees.
In the near future, Lumala wants to launch a social home and sports academy for vulnerable children. This home will provide accommodation, healthcare and mentorship as well as training for young athletes.
According to Lumala, the academy will also focus on academics, ensuring a holistic approach to youth development. His vision is to empower children from disadvantaged backgrounds, providing them with the resources and guidance to achieve their dreams.
When it comes to football in Uganda, Lumala says the country still has a long way to go especially when it comes to the salaries and welfare of the players.
“The salaries are still very low, and that is why very many local footballers are poor and they fear to speak out due to fear of losing opportunities and yet they are slowly dying in pain,” Lumala says.
Last year, Lumala continued his international journey by signing with Gokulam Kerala in India’s I-League where he currently plays.
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