Ghana national football team

The Ghana national football team represents Ghana in men's international football.[4] The team is named the Black Stars after the Black Star of Africa in the flag of Ghana.[5] It is governed by the Ghana Football Association, the governing body for football in Ghana. Prior to 1957, it played as the Gold Coast.

Ghana
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Black Stars
AssociationGhana Football Association
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationWAFU (West Africa)
Head coachOtto Addo
CaptainAndré Ayew
Most capsAndré Ayew (120)
Top scorerAsamoah Gyan (51)
Home stadiumVarious
FIFA codeGHA
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 68 Decrease 1 (4 April 2024)[1]
Highest14 (April–May 2007, February 2008)
Lowest89 (June 2004)
First international
 Gold Coast and United Kingdom British Togoland 1–0 Nigeria 
(Accra, British Gold Coast; 28 May 1950)
Biggest win
 Nyasaland 0–12 Gold Coast 
(Nyasaland; 15 October 1962)[2]
Biggest defeat
 Brazil 8–2 Ghana 
(Brazil; 27 March 1996)
World Cup
Appearances4 (first in 2006)
Best resultQuarter-finals (2010)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances23 (first in 1963)
Best resultChampions (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982)

Ghana qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 2006.[6][7] The team has won the Africa Cup of Nations four times (1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982), while finishing as runners-up five times (1968, 1970, 1992, 2010, and 2015). They have also qualified for the CHAN four times, finishing as runners-up twice (2009 and 2014).[8]

History

Members in the 1960s pose with some of Ghana's successive international trophies won.

On 19 August 1962 at the Accra Sports Stadium, hosted Real Madrid, who were at the time Spanish champions, former European champions and intercontinental champions and drew 3–3.[9]

Charles Kumi Gyamfi became coach in 1961, and they won successive African Cup of Nations titles, in 1963 and 1965. The Black Stars achieved their record win, 13–2 away to Kenya, after the second of these. They reached the final of the tournament in 1968 and 1970, losing 1–0 on both occasions, to DR Congo in 1968 and Sudan in 1970. Their domination of the tournament earned them the nickname "the Black Stars of Africa" in the 1960s.[10]

Fortunes changed for the Black Stars however, after they failed to qualify for 3 successive African Cup of Nations in the 1970s.[11]In the early 1980s however, with emerging talents such as Abedi Pele, the Black Stars beat Libya in the 1982 African Cup of Nations final hosted by Libya to win their fourth and to date, last continental title.[12] Fortunes changed again however, as in the 1984 tournament, they were knocked out in the group stages, and did not qualify for the 1986, 1988 and 1990 tournaments. In 1992 however, the Black Stars would come runners-up to the Ivory Coast in a penalty shootout after a goalless draw, which saw every player on the pitch take a penalty, in which they were beaten 11-10.[13] The Black Stars were at a disadvantage however, as African Footballer of the Year winner and the tournament's best player, Abedi Pele, had been suspended for the final.

Tensions among the squad led to the parliamentary and executive to intervene and settle issues between star players Abedi Pele and Tony Yeboah. In the 1990s, this may have played some part in the failure of the team to build on the successes of the national underage teams. However, the generation of Black Stars players who went to the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship final became the "core" of the team at the 2002 African Cup of Nations, going undefeated for a year in 2005 and qualifying for the final tournament of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The Black Stars started by succumbing to a 2–0 defeat to eventual champions Italy, and wins over Czech Republic (2–0) and United States (2–1). This saw them advance through to the second round, where they lost 3–0 to Brazil.[14]

Under head coach Milovan Rajevac, the Black Stars went on to secure a 100% win record in their qualification campaign, winning their group and becoming the first African team to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In the final tournament, they were placed in Group D with Germany, Serbia and Australia, advancing to the round of 16 where they played the United States, winning 2–1 in extra time to become only the third African nation to reach the World Cup quarter-finals. They then lost to Uruguay in a penalty shootout in the quarter-finals, after Uruguayan forward Luis Suárez blocked a header with his hand in the penalty box in extra time and was sent off. Asamoah Gyan missed the penalty given for the handball, with the score remaining at 1-1. Ghana went on to lose the penalty shootout 4-2, not making it to the semi-finals which would have been the first time an African country qualified for the semi-finals of a World Cup.[15]

In 2013, it became the only team in Africa to reach 4 consecutive semi-finals of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations twice, the first time since between 1963 and 1970.[16]

The Black Stars were sufficiently ranked by FIFA to start their qualifying for the 2014 World Cup in the second round. They won their group, and in the following round qualified for the 2014 World Cup finals in November 2013, after beating Egypt 7–3 on aggregate in a 2-legged play-off.[17] They were drawn in Group G for the finals, where they faced Germany, Portugal, and the United States.[18] They exited in the group stages recording 1 draw and 2 losses. However, they were the only team to not lose to Germany in the tournament, and the only team to hold onto a lead against the Germans at any point, drawing 2-2 (and leading 2-1) with the eventual winners.

In the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, they reached the final, to be denied the title on penalties against Ivory Coast. While their 2017 Africa Cup of Nations campaign ended in a 4th place finish - the third one in 4 consecutive editions of the tournament - in the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, they finished behind Egypt and Uganda in their final group. At the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, they were eliminated by Tunisia in the Round of 16. In 2021, Manager Rajevac was brought back, but the Black Stars ended up failing to win a match at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations where they lost 2–3 to debutants the Comoros after an André Ayew red card to finish bottom of their group. Thus, they failed to progress beyond the group stage for the first time since 2006. They drew 0–0 in a match against Nigeria and drew 1–1 in Nigeria to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup on away goals.[19] During the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Ghana lost their first match against Portugal (3–2). They earned their first and only victory in their second match against South Korea 3–2 after an insane thriller. In a "must win match to qualify" against Uruguay, the opponent that kicked out Ghana 12 years ago, Ghana instead lost 2–0 and thus finished bottom; however, despite failing to avenge the loss, South Korea's 2–1 win over Portugal ensured Ghana to have a consolation prize by also sending out Uruguay from the competition on the virtue of goals scored.

Culture

Kits and crest

Home shirt: 1970s–1980s

Adopted following the independence of Ghana in 1957, the black star has been included in the Black Stars' kits. The Black Stars' kits were sponsored by Puma SE from 2005, with the deal ending in 2014.[20]

Badge and anthem

Between 1990 and 2006 the Ghana national team used the kit in the colours of the national flag of Ghana, with gold, green and red used, as in the team's crest and also known as the Pan-African colours. The gold with green and red kit concept and design was used in the 60s and 70s, and designed with gold and green vertical stripes and red shoulders. An all black second kit was introduced in 2008 and in 2015, Black Stars' gold-red-green coloured kit and all black coloured kit is to be reassigned to the position of 1st and 2nd kits following the induction of a brown with blue and gold coloured Black Stars 3rd kit in 2012.[21][22]

The team's kit for the 2014 FIFA World Cup was ranked as the best kit of the tournament by BuzzFeed.[23]

Kit supplierPeriod
Erima1991–1992
Adidas1992–2000
Kappa2000–2005
Puma2005–

Grounds

Lizzy Sports Complex

The training facilities and training grounds are located at Agyeman Badu Stadium, Berekum Sports Stadium in Brong-Ahafo, the Tema Sports Stadium in Tema and the multi-functional Lizzy Sports Complex in Legon.[24]


Organization and finance

The Black Stars had no official head because of "corrupt" practices[25][26][27] by the then president, Kwesi Nyantakyi[28] and vice-president George Afriyie,[29] with Frank Davis as director of football, and Edward Bawa as treasurer.[30] The Ghana Football Association (GFA) signed a CN¥92.2 million (US$15 million) deal with Ghanaian state-run oil and gas exploration corporation, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), to sponsor the Black Stars and the renewable contract saw the oil and gas exploration corporation become the global headline sponsor of the Black Stars, with a yearly Black Stars player salary wage bill,[31][32] following the gold mining corporations Ashanti Goldfields Corporation and Goldfields Ghana Limited (GGL), which had been sponsoring the Black Stars since 2005.[33]

On 28 August 2013, Ghana Football Association (GFA) launched a TV channel and named GFA TV. The channel has the exclusive rights to broadcast all the Black Stars' matches.[34] In November 2013, the Black Stars signed a 2013–2015 CN¥30.6 million (US$5 million) and an additional classified multi-million private bank sponsorship deal with the Ghanaian state-run private banking institution UniBank.[35]

Supporters

Ghana Supporters Union at an AFCON 2015 match between Ghana and Guinea

The Black Stars maintain an average stadium match attendance of 60,000+ and a match attendance high of 80,000+, such as in the case of its 2010 FIFA World Cup quarter-final against Uruguay which was attended by 84,017 spectators.[36]Ghana's match against England on 29 March 2011 had the largest away following for any association football national team since the re-opening of Wembley Stadium in 2007.[37] The match was watched by 700 million people around the world.[37]

Following the team's appearances at the 2006 and 2010 World Cup tournaments they were greeted by some hundred avid fans dancing and singing at Kotoka International Airport in Accra.[38]

Rivalries

Vs. Nigeria in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations Quarter-Final

A rivalry is with the Super Eagles, the Nigeria national team. The "Battle of Supremacy on the Gulf of Guinea" is between two of the "most successful teams on the African continent".[39] The proximity of the two countries to each other, a dispute between the different association football competitions and wider diplomatic competition for influence across West Africa add to this rivalry.[39][40] The match between these two countries is called the Jollof derby.[41]

Other rivalries include the rivalry with Egypt and international rivalries with USA as well as Uruguay.

Media and arts

Match schedules are broadcast in English as in the case of inter-continental matches and in Akan nationally by Adom TV, PeaceFM, AdomFM and HappyFM. During the scheduled qualification for the 2014 World Cup national broadcaster GTV, a sub-division of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), broadcast to the Ghanaian public home qualifiers with away qualifiers broadcast by the satellite television broadcasting corporation Viasat 1. The friendly match against Turkey in August 2013 was televised by Viasat 1 and the qualifiers for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2018 Inter-Continental Championships are scheduled for public broadcast by the corporations GFA TV, GBC and Viasat 1.[42]

Products including books, documentary films, Azonto dances and songs have been made in the name of the team. These may be intended with commercial motives and are focused on previous and future World Cups or Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.

  • Books: books have been published on the team's history and participation in tournaments. These include Ghana, The Rediscovered Soccer Might: Watch Out World!,[43] about the history and performance of the Black Stars and association football national teams that the Black Stars have played against, and The Black Stars of Ghana by Alan Whelan;[44] about Black Stars commencing their progress through the final rounds of the 2010 World Cup and into the quarter-finals.
  • Documentary films: In 2010 Miracle Films Ghana Limited showcased a vintage documentary film picture, Kwame Nkrumah & Ghana's Black Stars, about Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah "Africa's man of the 2nd millennium" and "Pan-African pioneer",[45] who invested energy into making Ghana's association football national team – the Black Stars – a force in African soccer.[46]
  • Nickname: The Black Star Line, a shipping industry line incorporated by the founder of the Back-to-Africa movement, civil rights movement leader Marcus Garvey and the organiser of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA) from 1919 to 1922, gives the Ghana team its nicknames, the Black Stars of West Africa and the Black Stars of Africa.[46]
  • Dances: upon the Black Stars scoring against opposition teams, dance forms of the Ghanaian Azonto were performed by Black Stars players in their goal celebrations in match victories at the 2010 World Cup and in 2013, an elite dance version of the Ghanaian Azonto named; "(Akan: Mmonko)" (shrimp), was established and showcased at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations by the Black Stars players.[47] Black Stars goal celebrations in match victories at the 2014 World Cup and upon scoring against opposition teams, are to establish and showcase Alkayida.[48]
  • Songs: On occasions of past World Cups or African Championships, a number of musicians with music producers created hiplife football songs which were composed in the Akan language – the 2006 World Cup song, "Akan: Tuntum Nsorom Ye Ko Yen Anim", (Black Stars, We are moving forward) musical composed by the Musicians Union of Ghana, is to motivate the Black Stars to perform creditably in its quest for the capturing of the World Cup trophy.[49] Black Stars' captain and top-goalscorer Asamoah Gyan recorded and released a Hiplife song with 'Castro The Destroyer', where he features under the alias 'Baby Jet'. The song is entitled "African Girls" and is sung in the Akan language and was launched onto the Ghanaian screens, continental West Africa screens and onto the Sub-Saharan Africa screens. The music video shows the "Asamoah Gyan Dance" goal celebration which he demonstrated at the 2010 World Cup. The song "African Girls" won an award at the Ghana Music Awards in 2011. The 2010 World Cup song, "Ghana Black Stars (Official Song 2010 World Cup)" composed by Ghanaian hiplife music group "Kings and Queens Entertainment" approved by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) as GFA has indicated that the Black Stars are a protected brand.[50]

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win  Draw  Loss  Fixture

2023

v  Ghana
18 June 2023 AFCON qualification Madagascar  0–0  Ghana Antananarivo, Madagascar
17:00 UTC+3ReportStadium: Mahamasina Municipal Stadium
Referee: Patrice Milazar (Mauritius)
v  Central African Republic
7 September 2023 AFCON qualification Ghana  2–1  Central African Republic Kumasi, Ghana
16:00 UTC±0
ReportStadium: Baba Yara Stadium
Referee: Peter Waweru (Kenya)
v  Liberia
12 September Friendly Ghana  3–1  Liberia Accra, Ghana
16:00 UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Accra Sports Stadium
Referee: Kouassi Attiogbe (Togo)
v  Ghana
14 October Friendly Mexico  2–0  Ghana Charlotte, United States
21:00 UTC−4
ReportStadium: Bank of America Stadium
Referee: Joe Dickerson (United States)
v  Ghana
17 October Friendly United States  4–0  Ghana Nashville, United States
20:30 UTC−4
ReportStadium: Geodis Park
Referee: Marco Ortiz (Mexico)
v  Madagascar
17 November 2026 World Cup qualification Ghana  1–0  Madagascar Kumasi, Ghana
16:00 UTC±0
ReportStadium: Baba Yara Stadium
Attendance: 45,000
Referee: Samir Guezzaz (Morocco)
v  Ghana
21 November 2026 World Cup qualification Comoros  1–0  Ghana Moroni, Comoros
19:00 UTC+3ReportStadium: Stade de Moroni
Attendance: 11,628
Referee: Abdel Aziz Mohamed Bouh (Mauritania)

2024

v  Namibia
8 January Friendly Ghana  0–0  Namibia Kumasi, Ghana
20:00 UTC±0ReportStadium: Baba Yara Stadium
Referee: Charles Bulu (Ghana)
v  Cape Verde
14 January 2023 Africa Cup of Nations GS Ghana  1–2  Cape Verde Abidjan, Ivory Coast
20:00 UTC±0Djiku 56'ReportStadium: Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium
Attendance: 11,943
Referee: Jean-Jacques Ndala Ngambo (DR Congo)
v  Ghana
18 January 2023 Africa Cup of Nations GS Egypt  2–2  Ghana Abidjan, Ivory Coast
20:00 UTC±0Report
Stadium: Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium
Attendance: 20,808
Referee: Pierre Atcho (Gabon)
v  Ghana
22 January 2023 Africa Cup of Nations GS Mozambique  2–2  Ghana Abidjan, Ivory Coast
20:00 UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Alassane Ouattara Stadium
Referee: Ibrahim Mutaz (Libya)
v  Ghana
22 March Friendly Nigeria  2–1  Ghana Marrakech, Morocco
--:-- UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Stade de Marrakech
Referee: Rédouane Jiyed (Morocco)
v  Ghana
26 March Friendly Uganda  2–2  Ghana Marrakech, Morocco
16:00 UTC±0Stadium: Stade de Marrakech

Coaches

As of 24 January 2024
PositionName
Head coach Otto Addo
Assistant coach Joseph Laumann
Assistant coach John Paintsil
Goalkeeping coach Fatau Dauda

History

Mali vs Ghana, exhibition game at Paris, 31 March 2015

Since 1957 it has had 32 different head coaches and 3 caretakers. C. K. Gyamfi led the Black Stars to 3 Africa Cup of Nations titles – in 1963, 1965 and 1982 – making Gyamfi the "joint most successful coach" in the competition's history.[51] Fred Osam Duodu led the Black Stars to their 1978 Africa Cup of Nations title;[52] Ratomir Dujković, Milovan Rajevac, and James Kwesi Appiah have led the Black Stars to World Cup qualification.[53][54] 2 Serbian managers guided Ghana to the 2 first World Cup debuts.[55][56][57][58][59][60][61] The team is being headed by Chris Hughton who is the head coach and supported by George Boateng and Mas-Ud Didi Dramani as assistant coaches[62][63][64] of the senior national team, the Black Stars since February 2023.[65][66][67]

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[68]

Caps and goals correct as of 22 January 2023, after the match against Mozambique.

No.Pos.PlayerDate of birth (age)CapsGoalsClub
1GKRichard Ofori (1993-11-01) 1 November 1993 (age 30)330 Orlando Pirates
1GKLawrence Ati-Zigi (1996-11-29) 29 November 1996 (age 27)200 St. Gallen
1GKJoe Wollacott (1996-09-08) 8 September 1996 (age 27)110 Hibernian

2DFDaniel Amartey (1994-12-21) 21 December 1994 (age 29)550 Beşiktaş
2DFAlexander Djiku (1994-08-09) 9 August 1994 (age 29)271 Fenerbahçe
2DFGideon Mensah (1998-07-18) 18 July 1998 (age 25)240 Auxerre
2DFNicholas Opoku (1997-08-11) 11 August 1997 (age 26)181 Amiens
2DFDenis Odoi (1988-05-27) 27 May 1988 (age 35)130 Club Brugge
2DFAlidu Seidu (2000-06-04) 4 June 2000 (age 23)110 Rennes
2DFMohammed Salisu (1999-04-17) 17 April 1999 (age 25)102 Monaco
2DFKingsley Schindler (1993-07-12) 12 July 1993 (age 30)40 Samsunspor
2DFAbdul Fatawu Hamidu (1999-03-04) 4 March 1999 (age 25)10 Medeama

3MFAndré Ayew (captain) (1989-12-17) 17 December 1989 (age 34)11924 Le Havre
3MFMohammed Kudus (2000-08-02) 2 August 2000 (age 23)3211 West Ham United
3MFIddrisu Baba (1996-01-22) 22 January 1996 (age 28)280 Almería
3MFOsman Bukari (1998-12-13) 13 December 1998 (age 25)173 Red Star Belgrade
3MFSalis Abdul Samed (2000-03-26) 26 March 2000 (age 24)150 Lens
3MFJoseph Paintsil (1998-02-01) 1 February 1998 (age 26)150 LA Galaxy
3MFMajeed Ashimeru (1997-10-10) 10 October 1997 (age 26)90 Anderlecht
3MFElisha Owusu (1997-11-07) 7 November 1997 (age 26)80 Auxerre
3MFRansford-Yeboah Königsdörffer (2001-09-13) 13 September 2001 (age 22)40 Hamburger SV
3MFRichmond Lamptey (1997-03-18) 18 March 1997 (age 27)10 Asante Kotoko

4FWJordan Ayew (1991-09-11) 11 September 1991 (age 32)10022 Crystal Palace
4FWAntoine Semenyo (2000-01-07) 7 January 2000 (age 24)172 Bournemouth
4FWIñaki Williams (1994-06-15) 15 June 1994 (age 29)171 Athletic Bilbao
4FWErnest Nuamah (2003-11-01) 1 November 2003 (age 20)92 Lyon
4FWJonathan Sowah (2000-01-09) 9 January 2000 (age 24)30 Medeama

Recent call-ups

The following have also been called up in the last twelve months.

Pos.PlayerDate of birth (age)CapsGoalsClubLatest call-up
GKBenjamin Asare (1992-07-13) 13 July 1992 (age 31)00 Great Olympics2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GKFelix Kyei (2003-03-13) 13 March 2003 (age 21)00 Medeama2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GKAbdul Manaf Nurudeen (1999-02-08) 8 February 1999 (age 25)40 Eupenv.  Comoros, 21 November 2023

DFBaba Rahman (1994-07-02) 2 July 1994 (age 29)521 PAOK2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFKasim Adams (1995-06-22) 22 June 1995 (age 28)162 1899 Hoffenheim2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFAndy Yiadom (1991-12-02) 2 December 1991 (age 32)160 Reading2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFJoseph Larweh Attamah (1994-05-22) 22 May 1994 (age 29)60 Kayserispor2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFTariq Lamptey (2000-09-30) 30 September 2000 (age 23)40 Brighton & Hove Albion2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFStephan Ambrosius (1998-12-18) 18 December 1998 (age 25)20 Karlsruher SC2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFJerome Opoku (1998-10-14) 14 October 1998 (age 25)10 İstanbul Başakşehir2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFPatrick Kpozo (1997-07-15) 15 July 1997 (age 26)10 Baník Ostrava2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFAbdulai Nurudeen (2004-08-01) 1 August 2004 (age 19)00 Medeama2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFRazak Simpson (1998-07-15) 15 July 1998 (age 25)00 Nations2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DFJoseph Aidoo (1995-09-29) 29 September 1995 (age 28)170 Celta Vigov.  Comoros, 21 November 2023

MFThomas Partey (1993-06-13) 13 June 1993 (age 30)4713 Arsenal2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFEdmund Addo (2000-05-17) 17 May 2000 (age 23)120 Radnički Niš2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFDaniel Afriyie (2001-06-26) 26 June 2001 (age 22)64 Zürich2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFYaw Yeboah (1997-03-28) 28 March 1997 (age 27)40 Columbus Crew2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFMichael Baidoo (1999-05-14) 14 May 1999 (age 24)00 Elfsborg2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFForson Amankwah (2002-12-31) 31 December 2002 (age 21)00 Red Bull Salzburg2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFEmmanuel Antwi (2000-01-08) 8 January 2000 (age 24)00 Great Olympics2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MFGodfred Atuahene (2002-10-10) 10 October 2002 (age 21)00 Dreams2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE

FWKamaldeen Sulemana (2002-02-15) 15 February 2002 (age 22)180 Southampton2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWAbdul Fatawu (2004-03-08) 8 March 2004 (age 20)151 Leicester City2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWBenjamin Tetteh (1997-07-10) 10 July 1997 (age 26)70 Metz2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWBernard Tekpetey (1997-09-03) 3 September 1997 (age 26)20 Ludogorets Razgrad2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWJohn Antwi (1992-08-06) 6 August 1992 (age 31)20 Dreams2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWHafiz Konkoni (1999-12-27) 27 December 1999 (age 24)00 Young Africans2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWBrandon Thomas-Asante (1998-12-28) 28 December 1998 (age 25)00 West Bromwich Albion2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWDerrick Fordjour (2002-06-21) 21 June 2002 (age 21)00 Medeama2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FWKwasi Wriedt (1994-07-10) 10 July 1994 (age 29)60 VfL Osnabrückv.  Central African Republic, 5 September 2023

Notes
  • CNC Cancelled match.
  • WD Withdrew.
  • INJ Withdrew because of injury.
  • PRE Preliminary squad.
  • RET Retired from international soccer.
  • SUS Suspended from the team.

Local team

The football association of Ghana (GFA) administers national teams at different levels, including 1 for the local national team. The team is restricted to players who only play in the local league, thus the Ghana Premier League. It is nicknamed Local Black Stars.[69][70][71]

Ghana Supporters Union

The Ghana Supporters Union was established in 2005 during the African Cup of Nations qualifiers and the Blackstars first qualification in Germany. The union was officially formed in 2017 and was facilitated by the then Minister of Youth and Sports, Hon. Isaac Kwame Asiamah. Since that time till now the union has been active in supporting the National Team both locally and internationally.[72]

Records

As of 26 March 2024[73]
Players in bold are still active with Ghana.

Most appearances

André Ayew is Ghana's most capped player with 120 appearances.
RankPlayerCapsGoalsCareer
1André Ayew120242007–present
2Asamoah Gyan109512003–2019
3Jordan Ayew102242010–present
4Richard Kingson9311996–2011
5John Paintsil9102001–2013
6Harrison Afful8602008–2018
7Sulley Muntari84202002–2014
8John Mensah8132001–2012
9Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu78112008–2017
10Kwadwo Asamoah7442008–2019

Top goalscorers

Asamoah Gyan is Ghana's top goalscorer with 51 goals.
RankPlayerGoalsCapsRatioCareer
1Asamoah Gyan511090.472003–2019
2Edward Acquah45411.11956–1964
3Kwasi Owusu36450.81968–1976
4Tony Yeboah29590.491985–1997
5Karim Abdul Razak25620.41975–1988
6Jordan Ayew241020.242010–present
André Ayew241190.22007–present
8Wilberforce Mfum20260.771960–1968
Sulley Muntari20840.242002–2014
10Osei Kofi19250.761964–1973
Abedi Pele19730.261982–1998

Captains

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

At the 2006 World Cup and vs. Uruguay in the 2010 FIFA World Cup quarter-final match at Soccer City, Johannesburg on 2 July 2010

Ghana have qualified for 4 FIFA World Cup tournaments; 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2022. In 2006, it was the only African side to advance to the second round of the World Cup in Germany, and was the 6th nation in a row from Africa to progress beyond the group stages of the World Cup.[82] It had the youngest team in the 2006 edition with an average age of 23 years and 352 days,[82] and were praised for their improving performance.[83][84] FIFA ranked it 13th out of the 32 countries who competed in the tournament.[85]

In the 2010 World Cup, it progressed beyond the group stages of the World Cup in South Africa, and reached the quarter-finals where it was eliminated by Uruguay. It was defeated on penalty shootout after Luis Suárez hand-balled on the goal line into extra time, preventing a possible winning goal.[86] Of the 32 countries that participated in the 2010 edition, FIFA ranked it 7th.[87]

After beating Egypt 7–3 on aggregate in November 2013, it qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.[88] It was drawn in Group G with Germany, United States and Portugal.[89] For the first time, it fell in the group stage, tying Germany 2–2 andlosing to the United States and Portugal by 2–1.[90]

RoundPldWDLGFGAGD
World Cup Finals155371823−5
World Cup Quals (H)3424827819+59
World Cup Quals (A)3398163742−5
Total8238192513384+49
FIFA World CupQualification
YearRoundPositionPldWDLFASquadPldWDLFACampaign
1930 to 1954Part of United KingdomPart of United Kingdom
1958Not a FIFA memberNot a FIFA member
1962Did not qualify2110201962
1966WithdrewWithdrew
1970
1974 Did not qualify 63111451974
19783102351978
1982WithdrewWithdrew
1986
1990 Did not qualify 2011021990
19944202431994
19988242981998
20021243410112002
2006Round of 1613th420246Squad128312442006
2010Quarter-finals7th522154Squad128132082010
2014Group stage25th301246Squad86022562014
2018Did not qualify8251952018
2022Group stage24th310257Squad8431842022
2026To be determined2101112026
2030To be determined2030
20342034
TotalQuarter-finals4/161553718238742222112962

Africa Cup of Nations

The Black stars of Ghana has won the Africa Cup of Nations 4 times – in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982 – bettered by Cameroon and Egypt. As the first winner of 3 AFCON tournaments, Ghana obtained the right to permanently hold the trophy in 1978.[91]

AFCON 2015 match with Guinea
Final
YearRoundPositionPldWD*LGFGA
1957Not affiliated to CAF
1959
1962Did not qualify
1963Champions1st321061
1965Champions1st3300125
1968Second place2nd5311118
1970Second place2nd522164
1972Did not qualify
1974
1976
1978Champions1st541092
1980Group stage5th311111
1982Champions1st523075
1984Group stage6th310224
1986Did not qualify
1988
1990
1992Runners-up2nd541062
1994Quarter-finals5th320132
1996Fourth place4th640275
1998Group stage11th310233
2000Quarter-finals8th411234
20027th412122
2004Did not qualify
2006Group stage10th310223
2008Third place3rd6501115
2010Runners-up2nd530244
2012Fourth place4th631265
2013Fourth place4th6321106
2015Runners-up2nd6411103
2017Fourth place4th630345
2019Round of 1612th413053
2021Group stage19th301235
202317th302156
2025To be determined
2027
Total4x Title24/3610554232813893
*Draws include matches decided by penalty shoot-out.

West African Nations Cup and WAFU Nations Cup

West African Football Union Nations Cup

YearRoundPositionPldWDLGFGAGD
2010Semi-finalThird place5401113+8
2011Semi-final4th place410358−3
2013FinalWinner430194+5
Total138052515+10

Olympic Games

YearRoundPositionPldWDLGFGA
London 1908Did not participate
Stockholm 1912
Antwerp 1920
Paris 1924
Amsterdam 1928
Berlin 1936
London 1948
Helsinki 1952 [a]
Melbourne 1956
Rome 1960Did not qualify
Tokyo 1964Quarter-final7th4112712
Mexico 1968Round 112th302168
Munich 1972Round 116th3003111
Montreal 1976Withdrew after qualifying
Moscow 1980
Los Angeles 1984Did not qualify
Seoul 1988
Total101361431
a. Note: The Gold Coast team established in 1950; country known as Gold Coast then renamed Ghana in 1957, not competing in international tournaments and not being part of neither FIFA nor CAF until 1958, and therefore recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Other

Winners: 1959, 1960, 1963
Winners: 1962
Runners up: 1982
  • Samuel K. Doe Cup 1986[95]
Runners up: 1986
  • Black Stars Tournament 1993 (Libreville, Gabon)[96]
Third: 1993
  • Great Artificial River Championship 1999 (Libya)[97]
Runners up: 1999
Third: 2003

References

External links