Vipers Appoint Controversial Charles Masembe As New Sporting Director

Uganda Premier League side Vipers SC have appointed controversial former FIFA referee Charles Masembe as their new Sporting Director.

Masembe, who lost his FIFA badge because of his poor performance in the 1998 Africa Cup of Nations, is expected to share some of the burden in terms of recruitment and bridging the gap between the board and the technical bench.

Masembe is also expected to review the club’s transfer policy as they prepare for the next season’s Africa Champions League and other domestic competitions.

Many of players who were signed last season failed to meet expectations despite the club winning their fourth league title.

The 66-year-old has not held any football administrative position since 2009 after he went to hiding following claims of his alleged involvement in a scam to get Ugandans a UK visa under the pretext of attending football related courses there.

“We unveil Masembe as one of the most experienced and exposed football administrators because our dream is big and we want people like him that can help us archive our vision of becoming the first class football club in Uganda and Africa,” Vipers president Lawrence Mulindwa told the club website.

Masembe’s last job was Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) Chief Executive Officer, a position which he lost after he misinterpreted the FIFA 2010 World qualifier rules.

He stated that Uganda had reached the second phase of the preliminaries, which they hadn’t, thus making his already wobbly position worse.

In Africa, Masembe is remembered as a controversial referee for his decisions during 1998 Africa Cup of Nations semis-finals in Burkina Faso where he added unnecessary injury time in the match pitting South Africa and DR Congo.