MOGADISHU STADIUM RETURNS BACK TO GLORY

Mogadishu Stadium, the biggest Sporting facility in Somalia. The stadium was initially constructed in 1977 during the President Siad Barre administration to host various sporting activities, presidential addresses and other national events. 

However, the civil unrest in the 80’s and 90’s resulted in Mogadishu Stadium being used as a military base by various armed factions. The Al-Shabaab insurgents laid siege on much of Mogadishu, and were notorious for also prohibiting sporting activities.

Many attempts to upgrade Mogadishu Stadium proved abortive, including an artificial pitch that FIFA financed. Mogadishu Stadium continued to suffer from infrastructure deterioration.

Eventually, help started coming in 2018 after the official handover of the stadium by the African Union Mission in Somalia. The soldiers had been using the Mogadishu Stadium as a military base since 2011. The Somalia Government began renovating the stadium in conjunction with Chinese officials. The rehabilitation of Mogadishu Stadium got contributions from the Government of Somalia, the European Union, Norway and some private companies. A major part of the rehabilitation were completed in March 2020. See Photo tweets

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