The Road to World Rugby Junior Trophy Qualification Begins in Kampala

Image: Uganda captain Elijah Kantinti, Tunisia captain Mohamed Alfi, Namibia captain Tjeripo Karuhumba,Kenya captain Justin Lunale Ng’ombe and Zambia captain Chama Kamuntu at the Kasubi Tombs in Kampala, Uganda. (Left to Right) (Zimbabwe’s captain was not present for the photograph)

Defending champions Namibia open their title defence against Tunisia tomorrow at 10:00 EAT in Kampala, with Kenya, Zimbabwe, Uganda and Zambia also chasing continental glory. (Tickets, Fixtures and Free Streaming Information Below)

 

KAMPALA, Uganda –All signs point to one of the most fiercely contested editions of the Rugby Africa U20 Barthes Trophy, with the Tunisia, Namibia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia and hosts Uganda leaving nothing to chance in their pursuit of continental glory.

 

The tournament will take place from 7–15 August at Muteesa II Stadium in Kampala, with Tunisia the first team to arrive in the Ugandan capital, landing more than a week before the six-team competition gets underway.

 

The North Africans have made full use of their extended stay, holding a training camp and playing a series of warm-up matches, including against Uganda’s squad selected for the 2026 Barthes Trophy.

Tunisia will face defending champions Namibia in the Performance Division semi-finals and will head into the tournament well acclimatised to the conditions.

“We arrived early to acclimatise to the altitude, and take time to prepare more,” Tunisia star centre Toussef Abid told Rugby Africa Media.

 

“People in Uganda are so nice, and we’ve been happy to experience this beautiful country.”

 

Defending champions Namibia have also arrived in confident mood as they target a record fourth Barthes Trophy title in the tournament’s modern era.

The Junior Welwitschias were officially sent off at a ceremony in Windhoek this week, where Namibia Rugby Union CEO John Haynes challenged the squad to retain their crown.

“You are not merely going to participate,” Haynes told the players.

“You are going to defend your trophy as the defending champions. That achievement was earned through commitment and hard work, and now you have the opportunity to continue making Namibia proud.”

 

The 2026 edition introduces a new tiered competition format. The Performance Division will begin directly with the semi-finals, featuring Namibia, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Tunisia.

 

Meanwhile, Uganda and Zambia will contest the First Division, meeting twice during the tournament before Uganda faces Zimbabwe in the second-tier finale on the competition’s final day.

 

Zimbabwe head coach Shaun De Souza, whose side opens against Kenya in the Performance Division semi-finals, welcomed the new structure, saying it will ensure more competitive matches between evenly matched teams.

“I think it’s a good initiative from Rugby Africa,” De Souza told local media outlet Zimpapers in Harare before the team’s departure.

 

“It provides a platform for teams in the tournament to play strength on strength.

“It’s no good for a team who won the tournament the year before to come in on day one and play a team and win by 60 points. I don’t think the team that is losing by 60 points is learning anything.

 

“However, if they split the tiers, then both the top and developmental teams will be on equal footing and play strength on strength in the top four. This is going to help the standard go up and build competitiveness.”

 

Zimbabwe face a stern opening challenge against a Kenyan side tied with Namibia on three Barthes Trophy titles since the competition was rebranded in 2016.

Kenya enter the tournament with strong recent pedigree. They claimed their third title in 2024 in Zimbabwe, ending Zimbabwe’s two-year reign after the latter had hosted back-to-back editions in 2022 and 2023. Last year, when Zimbabwe hosted once again in Harare, Kenya finished runners-up to Namibia.

 

Several members of Kenya’s 2025 squad return for another campaign, including Jackson Siketa and Faran Juma, with head coach Simon Jawichre hoping their experience will prove decisive.

 

“They played last year in Zimbabwe and have been active for their club sides in the 15s and the ongoing Sevens circuit,” Jawichre told Kenyan media. “A good number of our forwards are also returning and that experience will be key. We will take one match at a time. Zimbabwe is a solid side that plays a style similar to ours. We have studied their video footage and we hope we can match them.”

 

Hosts Uganda have benefited from valuable preparation against Tunisia and believe the experience has strengthened the squad ahead of their First Division campaign.

 

“First of all, I’d like to say a big thank you to the Uganda Rugby Union for organising this,” Uganda head coach Marshal Tchumcan told the Ugandan press.

“It exposed our players to some quality players and quality team, which is Tunisia, and kudos again to the union for this. It was positive, we learnt a lot. It gave us another dimension of the game. We took some notes home, which we will use in this tournament. For me, I was a bit skeptical in the beginning but after going through it, I think it was good; in a game situation, off the line-out, off the scrum-down, defending, attacking. It was a good session, I’ll go for it again.”

Uganda’s First Division opponents, Zambia, arrive with a youthful squad made up largely of school players, reflecting the Zambia Rugby Union’s commitment to giving emerging talent early exposure at continental level.

 

Veteran coach Phillip Dongo returns to lead another Zambian age-group side. Having spent nearly a decade as head coach of the country’s Under-18 schools team, Dongo knows much of the travelling squad well.

 

“This is just like me coming into the fold again for the first time because I have more or less reached retirement age, but I actually used to be the head coach of the Under-18s for the schools for almost 10 years,” Dongo told the Zambia Daily Mail.

 

“I think preparations went well for this tournament.”

 

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Performance Division

• Namibia
• Zimbabwe
• Kenya
• Tunisia

First Division

• Zambia
• Uganda

Where to watch?

Rugby Pass TV: https://rugbypass.tv/home

Rugby Africa YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/RugbyAfricaOfficial

Rugby Africa Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RugbyAfrique

Friday 7 August 2026 (EAT)

• 10:00 – Namibia vs Tunisia (Performance Division)
• 13:00 – Kenya vs Zimbabwe (Performance Division)
• 16:00 – Zambia vs Uganda  (First Division)

Tuesday 11 August 2026 (EAT)

• 10:00 – Zambia vs Uganda (First Division)
• 12:00 – LM1 vs LM2 (Performance Division)
• 15:00 – WM1 vs WM2  (Performance Division) (Winner of Tournament)

Saturday 15 August 2026 (EAT)

• 16:00 – Uganda vs Zimbabwe  (Test Match)

 

Written by Enock Muchinjo