The Ugandan football community is in mourning after the death of a player who was fatally injured during a robbery in the capital, Kampala, on Tuesday night.

David Owori, who captained Sports Club Villa, a Uganda Premier League club, and represented the national team, was attacked after resisting an attempt to steal his mobile phone and other belongings near his home in Makindye division.

Racheal Kawala, a spokesperson for the Kampala Metropolitan police, said he was found unconscious by ​passersby, who took him to a nearby hospital. He was ​transferred to another hospital, where he was pronounced dead on Wednesday.

Witnesses said attackers hit the footballer with paving stones before robbing him and fleeing, leaving him unconscious, the BBC reported.

Owori, 27, was a right-back and midfielder for SC Villa. He helped the team win a record 17th Uganda Premier League title in 2024.

He started his senior career in 2016 at the Uganda Premier League side Vipers Sports Club and had stints in Europe with Vélez CF in Spain and Utsiktens BK in Sweden.

He played for the national team in the qualifiers for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.

SC Villa said: “It is with profound sorrow that we announce the untimely passing of our captain, Owori, who had been receiving treatment at Case Clinic following an attack by suspected thugs. Our deepest condolences and prayers are with his family.”

The Federation ​of Uganda Football Associations said: “David was not just a footballer. He was ​both a leader and an inspiration to a generation. As ​Captain of SC Villa, he led with courage, humility and passion. In the Uganda Cranes jersey, he carried the hopes of a nation.”

It added: “We have lost a son, a leader and a star. His light on and off the pitch will never be forgotten.”

The Ugandan parliament observed a minute of silence in Owori’s honour on Wednesday.

In June Sydney Gongodyo, a Ugandan rugby international, ​died after a mob attacked him in Kampala, mistaking him for a thief, police said.

Uganda’s National Council of Sports said: “Sadly, ​Ugandan sport has been hit with many such ​tragedies lately, and we hope for justice and a lasting solution.”