Ghana Football Association

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Founded	1957
FIFA affiliation	1958
CAF affiliation	1958
President Kwesi Nyantakyi (2006-)
Coach Claude Le Roy, 2006-

The Ghana Football Association is the governing body of football (soccer) in Ghana, based in Accra.

1 A Brief History of the Ghana Football Association (GFA)
2 The African Cup of Nations:
3 Clubs
4 Presidents
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] A Brief History of the Ghana Football Association (GFA)

[edit] Amateur Status

It is on record that the game of Football was introduced into the Gold Coast towards the close of the 19th Century by Merchants from Europe, who had then invaded the coastal areas and built forts and castles to enhance their trading activities either in merchandise or human cargo. The sailors at their leisure times played football among themselves and sometimes with a select side of the indigenous people. The popularity of the game spread like wild fire within a short time along the coast culminating in the formation of the first football club, EXCELSIOR in 1903 by Mr. Briton, a Jamaican born British, who was then Head Teacher of Philip Quaicoe Government Boys School in Cape Coast. As the popularity of the game grew, other clubs along the coast, namely: Accra Hearts of Oak, Cape Coast Venomous Vipers, Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs, Sekondi Hasaacas and Sekondi Eleven Wise all amateur clubs were formed.

[edit] The Gold Coast Amateur Football Association

In 1952, the Government of the Gold Coast enacted Ordinance 14, establishing the Gold Coast Amateur Sports Council, which gave it legal authority to control all amateur Associations including Football. Indeed, as the popularity of the game spread throughout the entire country, the then existing clubs, towards the tail end of 1930, met and elected one Mr. Richard Akwei as their Chairman. However, towards the middle of 1950, the clubs, spearheaded by Mr. Ohene Djan accused Mr. Richard Akwei of maladministration, and a Chairman who was not up to the task of transforming Gold Coast Football to greater heights. They therefore addressed petitions to the Governor of the Gold Coast, Sir Gordon Arden Clerke and the Pioneer Sports Organiser, Mr. Joseph Ranadurai, a Jamaican born British on the mal-administration of the Amateur Football Association headed by Mr. Akwei. While the petition was being addressed, Mr. Ohene Djan spear headed a “Football Revolution” and succeeded in toppling the Richard Akwei Administration in 1957.

[edit] The Football Revolution – 1957:

The die was cast; Football Administration was given a new lease. Mr. Ohene Djan was elected General Secretary of the Association by the clubs. The Ghana Amateur Football Association was officially founded. Forward looking and dynamic as he was, he affiliated the Association to CAF and FIFA in 1958, in the same year respectively. He was instrumental in getting a Pharmaceutical Firm Merrs R.R. Harding and Company to sponsor the first FA cup competition among 8 clubs. In the same year he succeeded in securing the services of an ex-patriate Coach, Mr. George Ainsley for the National Team. Then in 1959, he succeeded again in organising the first National league before Ghana became a Republic on 1st July, 1960.

[edit] The African Cup of Nations:

The Ghana Amateur Football Association was affiliated to CAF in 1958 and in 1963, it won the bid to host the 5th African Cup of Nations to co-incide with the Meeting of the (O.A.U.) Heads of States and Government in Accra. Ghana won the trophy and went ahead again to successfully defend it in Tunisia in 1965. By these sterling feats, Ghana Football had become a house hold word in the African continent. Mr. Ohene Djan was one of the pillars in African Football and in CAF. As one of the then leading political leaders in Africa, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah the First President of the Republic of Ghana used football to chalk political victories as follows:-

(i) he championed the cause of “African personality” in football;

(ii) he used football as a tool to fight against apartheid in South Africa;

(iii) he used football to weld the heterogeneous cultures of Africa together; and

(iv) he used football as a vehicle to place Ghana on the football map of Africa and the World.

In a nutshell, after the 1965 triumph, Ghana hosted and won the 13th edition of the African Cup of Nations trophy for keeps in 1978, and four years later, won it again in Tripoli, Libya. The team have won the African Cup of Nations four times (in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982), making Ghana the second most successful team in the contest's history, together with Cameroon, after Egypt won a fifth title in 2006.

Although the team did not qualify for the senior FIFA World Cup until 2006, Ghana has enjoyed tremendous success at the youth level, winning the FIFA World Under-17 title twice and finishing runner-up twice. Ghana has also finished second at the FIFA World Youth Championship twice as well. Ghana became the 1st African Country to win a medal in Football at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

With regard to Women Football, the Ghana’s Black Queens has participated in two World Cup tournaments and the Olympic Games. It has always also been Runners-up to the Falcons of Nigeria in the African Cup of Nations series.

Changing times changing needs. Ghana Football shrugged off its fully Amateur Status to become Professional, enabling clubs to be incorporated under the companies Code (Act 193, 1963) as Limited Liability Companies either by shares or guarantee through the 1993 Famous Winneba Declaration.

With the youngest squad in World Cup 2006, strong displays and a host of top players many regardGhana as the best national team in the African continent.

Ghana will host the next African Cup of Nations Tournament in January 2008