Football
6y

GFA explain why Black Stars didn't organise international friendlies

Ghana Football Association Vice-President George Afriyie has told KweséESPN that the federation's declining financial situation is the reason why no fixtures were organised for the Black Stars during the international break.

While Africa's other major nations have all been in action over the last week, Ghana have been conspicuous in their absence from the footballing fixture list.

Indeed, Kwesi Appiah's side haven't taken to the field since their disappointing World Cup qualifying campaign ended with a draw against Egypt in November.

"We had offers for friendly games this window but the financials of [the propositions] just didn't suit us," Afriyie told KweséESPN.

"We would have had to spend significantly to honour the game and at the moment there is simply no money for that after we lost our headline sponsor."

The team's headline sponsor - the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation - curtailed their $4 million-a-year sponsorship of the team and opted for a $1.5m deal with the Ministry of Youth and Sports that takes care of general sports development.

That decision has meant that beyond funding to pay the salary of the Black Stars coach, the GFA have also lost revenue to pay appearance fees and preparation money for friendlies.

"In the past, friendly games have never been about how well we are playing," Afriyie added. "We've been involved in games because it provides a good bonding session for the team on a regular basis but it's never been a profit-making venture for us so in that sense nothing has changed."

The failure to arrange any action for the Black Stars during the international window adds to the GFA's problems in recent months.

The Ghana Premier League has only just started after a long legal battle with Great Olympics, while the GFA is battling to find a sponsor for the league in light of its tarnished reputation. Ghana will be back in action in June with two friendly games against World Cup-bound Japan and Iceland.

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