The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has called for greater national investment in football, with President Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku warning that long-term success cannot be achieved by the governing body alone.

Simeon-Okraku made the appeal during a meeting between the GFA Executive Council and Parliament's Select Committee on Sports on Wednesday, November 4, 2026. The discussions covered the Black Stars, domestic football, refereeing, infrastructure, investment and the financial pressures facing the Association.

The GFA delegation included Vice-President Mark Addo and Executive Council members Nana Sarfo Oduro, Gideon Fosu, Frederick Acheampong, Kingsley Osei Bonsu, Samuel Aboabire, Eugene Nobel Noel, Alhaji Abu-Hassan and Dr. Ransford Abbey.

Simeon-Okraku said Ghana's failure to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) for 44 years needed to be examined, despite the country producing several generations of outstanding players and reaching three finals during that period.

“The Black Stars in 44 years have not won the AFCON. This is a statement of fact. In 44 years, we've had different generations of super talents, and in 44 years, we've been to the grand finale on three occasions,” he said.

He declined to discuss some of the reasons publicly, saying the presence of cameras meant sensitive comments could have damaging consequences.

“There are certain reasons that I will not want to talk about here because I see cameras and whatever we say here is public. Sometimes certain truths said at a wrong time could be very damaging,” he stated.

The GFA president offered to discuss those issues privately with the Committee.

“If this committee is very interested in going to the bottom to find perhaps that singular reason why Ghana in 44 years has not won an AFCON trophy, we can have that discussion without cameras,” he added.

Infrastructure and sponsorship concerns

Simeon-Okraku said the State had to provide greater support through infrastructure, resources and other systems required for football to develop.

“If we are to be honest, there is a lot more that brings sustained success in football,” he said.

He revealed that Ghana's national teams, including the Black Stars and Black Queens, depend on a single bus bought by the GFA in 2008. After 18 years of service, the vehicle broke down and the Association had to rent another bus during the most recent international window.

“Your Black Stars, your Black Queens, and the 18 other national teams have access to one bus that was purchased by the GFA in 2008. Now the bus is broken. During the last international window, the GFA had to rent a bus,” he told Parliament.

The president also said Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) restrictions had cost Ghana football a proposed sponsorship with Guinness Ghana Limited. The company had wanted to invest more than $5 million annually in the Ghana Premier League, but the agreement was not approved.

“We were approached by Guinness Ghana Limited wanting to invest heavily in the Ghana Premier League. We did whatever we had to do. We had a series of meetings. At the end, FDA said no. The deal was, if I'm not mistaken, over $5 million a year. We lost it,” he said.

He urged Parliament to consider removing the FDA's power to approve or reject sponsorship agreements involving alcoholic beverage companies.

The Essipong Stadium was also granted temporary approval to host Ghana's 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Somalia.

Mark Addo, Dr. Randy Abbey, Frederick Acheampong, Gideon Fosu and Nana Sarfo Oduro contributed to the discussions. The meeting ended with both sides stressing the need for closer cooperation between the GFA and Parliament to address Ghana football's structural, financial and infrastructural challenges.