UDFA pins hopes on new facilities for 2026 football revival in Linden

Upper Demerara Football Association (UDFA) President Wainwright Bethune has painted a sobering picture of the state of football in Linden over the past few years, while expressing cautious optimism for a resurgence once proper playing facilities become available.
Reflecting on 2025, Bethune explained that the challenges facing football in Linden could not be limited to a single year. Instead, he pointed to a prolonged period of decline stretching from 2023 to 2025, marked by minimal football activity, particularly at the senior level.
“I wouldn’t want to just fix it to the year 2025,” Bethune said. “From 2023 to 2025, there has been little or no football activity in Linden.”

While a few junior competitions were successfully staged – including tournaments hosted by New Era, ExxonMobil, and an Under-17 competition – Bethune noted that the senior football Linden is known for has been virtually absent.
“The senior football that we are accustomed to – the senior league and all other senior football – has been non-existent,” he stated.
According to the UDFA President, the primary obstacle has been the lack of suitable playing venues. Currently, the Wisburg Secondary School Ground is the only available option, but its poor drainage and vulnerability to heavy rainfall make it unreliable for competitive football.
“If there’s a heavy downpour and a good game is played, that ground would be out of commission for a week or two,” Bethune explained. “That’s a major problem.”
Compounding the issue is the ongoing repair work at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground, traditionally Linden’s main football venue. With no viable alternative prepared, football administrators and players alike have been left in limbo. “Linden was always a football powerhouse,” Bethune lamented. “That has dwindled to little or nothing.”

Looking ahead to 2026, Bethune said the UDFA remains committed to rebuilding the sport through structured development programmes. These include initiatives at the pee-wee and junior levels, coaching and referee training, as well as the long-awaited return of the senior league.
However, he stressed that meaningful progress was heavily dependent on the availability of proper facilities, particularly the completion of the Mackenzie Sports Club ground or the Bayrock Community Centre Ground.
“We are hopeful that these grounds would be available sometime during the course of this year,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll have conversations with the persons or Ministry responsible so they can understand the depth of our plight.”
Bethune expressed optimism that if the facilities were completed by the fourth quarter of 2026, football activity in Linden could see a significant revival.
“Once these grounds become available, then we will see more activity, more games surrounding football,” he concluded.
For now, Linden’s football fraternity waits patiently, hopeful that long-standing infrastructural challenges will soon be resolved, allowing the region to reclaim its proud footballing legacy.