This follows a statement released on Thursday saying the qualifiers that were set for next month had been pushed ahead after consultation with the world football governing body, FIFA.

”The CAF emergency committee in consultation with FIFA decided to postpone the CAF qualifier for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 that were due to be played in June 2021 after taking into consideration the current challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the need to ensure the optimal playing conditions for all participating teams”. CAF said in a statement

“The qualifiers will now take place in the existing windows of September, October and November 2021, and March 2022,” CAF added.

The statement revealed that the body was reassessing various protocols in regards to COVID-19 SoPs.

“CAF is reassessing its protocols and processes to enhance the implementation of COVID-related protocols, including specifically focusing on pre-match testing which had been the source of some challenges in previous windows,” revealed the statement seen by Spy Uganda whose copy is attached here.

Uganda was pooled in Group E alongside neighbors Kenya, Rwanda, and Mali.

The Cranes will begin their quest for a first-ever appearance at the global showpiece with a trip to Nairobi to face Kenya before returning to action with a home fixture against Mali to be played in Kampala.

The Cranes will then head for a doubleheader with Rwanda and the return leg in a space of two to three weeks and then host Kenya before the penultimate group game with Mali in Bamako.

The group winner after six games will go into the final qualifying phase that will have nine other group leaders.

There will then be a draw where only five teams will qualify for the most prestigious football tournament in the world.