Category: Local Sports

A Ghana Football Association (GFA) Executive Member, Frederick Acheampong, has indicated his openness to a potential return of Andre Dede Ayew to Ghana’s National Men’s Football Team, the Black Stars.

He made this indication via an interview with Akoma FM as the Black Stars prepare to take on Chad and Madagascar on March 21 and 24 respectively in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Dede Ayew who has served as Black Stars captain for several years prior to his absence in recent Black Stars games is in the running to be called up by Black Stars head coach Otto Addo for the upcoming games.

“Ayew is one of the Black Stars’ most committed (players). If he is playing top-level football in France and the coach needs him, why not? He has always shown commitment whenever given the opportunity” Acheampong said. 35 year old Ayew has scored four goals and has an assist in 17 French Ligue 1 games in the 2024-2025 season including bagging a goal and an assist in Le Havre AC’s crucial 4-3 win over RC Lens. The win moved Le Havre to 16^th place and in contention to avoid relegation; last season, Ayew scored crucial goals to keep The Mariners in the league.

Following President John Dramani Mahama’s State of the Nation Address on Thursday, where he urged the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to ensure transparency in budgeting for the Black Stars ahead of tournaments, newly surfaced budget documents have ignited discussions.

Submitted by the GFA to the Ministry of Youth and Sports, these documents detail the team’s expenditures for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, including a 28-day per diem allocation totaling $408,800.

The breakdown is as follows:

• Players (26 members): $150 per day for 28 days, totaling $109,200
• Technical Team (22 members): $150 per day for 28 days, amounting to $92,400
• Officials (37 members): $200 per day for 28 days, reaching $207,200

In addition to per diems, each of the 54 individuals who traveled with the team—encompassing players, technical staff, and officials—received a $100,000 appearance fee, leading to a staggering $5.4 million in total appearance fees. These figures contributed to the GFA’s overall tournament budget of $14.18 million. A notable inconsistency in the budget is the $300,000 allocated for a charter flight to transport the team to Qatar, despite some Black Stars players already being on-site for pre-tournament camping.

This inclusion of airfare costs for all players has raised questions about the justification and accuracy of the expense. Further attention has been drawn to honorariums paid to officials, including:

• Head of Delegation: $20,000
• General Secretary: $15,000
• Administrator: $15,000
• COVID Officer: $20,000
• National Teams Department Representative: $10,000

These disclosures have intensified scrutiny over the GFA’s financial management and transparency, especially in light of President Mahama’s remarks.

The blend of substantial per diems, hefty appearance fees, and puzzling travel expenses has fueled concerns about the association’s accountability and spending practices during major tournaments like the World Cup.

Former Black Stars defender, Afo Dodoo, has emphasized the crucial role of Ghanaian supporters ahead of the national team’s World Cup qualifier against Chad.

Ghana kicked off their World Cup qualifying campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Madagascar but suffered a setback with a defeat to Comoros.

However, the Black Stars bounced back in style, securing crucial wins against Mali and the Central African Republic in June last year to reignite their qualification hopes. But in the past few weeks, cases of Hooliganism have plagued Ghanaian football which has called for urgent measures to improve fan protection at our various stadiums with many calling for our games to be played behind closed doors.

Speaking in an interview with Channel One Sports, Dodoo urged fans to rally behind the team despite recent challenges, stressing that their presence is essential for success.

We can’t play without our crowd, and what happened shouldn’t take the fans out of our game. We need our fans. We need to win this game easily, but we shouldn’t underestimate our opponent

Dodoo acknowledged the rising level of competition in modern football, pointing out that no team can be taken lightly. According to him, the players will thrive with the backing of their passionate supporters.

These days, everybody is playing very well, so we need our fans. Our players would need our fans

He also called for swift action to resolve fan engagement issues that may be discouraging attendance at matches.

“That’s why I said we have to treat the fan engagement issues very quickly so that it goes off people’s minds so that people can go to the stadium. Ghanaians are Ghanaians ; they want to watch their football,” he added.
Dodoo urged all stakeholders to work towards attracting supporters back to the stadium, expressing confidence in the Black Stars’ ability to deliver a victory.

“We have things to do to bring them to the stadium. We have to encourage the supporters to come to the stadium because we will win this game

The Black Stars, currently in a strong position in the qualifiers, will be hoping for massive fan support as they take on Chad in their next crucial encounter.

Technical Advisor of Ghana’s National Football Team (Black Stars) and Director of Football at the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Winfried Schafer, has stated that Ghana’s Under 20 Men’s Football Team needs a “strong striker”.

He said this in an interview after watching the Black Satellites draw goalless with Ghana Premier League giants Accra Hearts of Oak.

The Black Satellites are preparing to compete in the 2025 AFCON Under 20 Championship from April 26 to May 18 in Cote D’Ivoire and Schafer believes that the team needs a “number 9”.

“The match was good, but I saw from our team, the first half, nobody shoot through to the goal…70% contact but nobody played the final pass. I think we need a strong number nine not only one number nine we need a number nine, very strong striker, he can keep the ball, he goes to the cross for us.”

The Black Satellites are in Group A alongside host nation Cote D’Ivoire, DR Congo, Tanzania and a yet to be determined representative from Central African Football Federations Union.

Technical Advisor of the Black Stars, Winfried Schafer, has called for unity in Ghana’s National Men’s Football Team ahead of crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

The Black Stars are set to take on Chad and Madagascar on March 21 and March 24 respectively in 2026 World Cup qualifiers; Ghana ranks second in Group I but is tied on points (nine) with leaders Comoros heading into the qualifiers. Ghana failed to qualify to the 2025 AFCON and Schafer has called for a united team to aid the Black Stars turn their fortunes around.

“Not the best player wins matches, the best teams wins matches. Everyone has to be proud (to wear the Ghana shirt). We have to work for the players, we give them respect…and then we have a big big chance to go the States. All together, we can do it.” The next FIFA World Cup takes place in the United States of America, Mexico and Canada.