Sports
Coach Ofei, one for present or future?
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• Desmond Ofei
The 13th African Games Accra 2023 will go into Ghana’s rich sports history as the most successful games event for the number of medals won.
It was not a single-sport event like a football, athletics, boxing or cycling championships for one to boldly declare that Ghana hosted and won.
This is because Ghana’s 68 medal haul was the best by her standards but was not enough to even place her among the top five countries.
Those slots were occupied by Egypt with 101 gold medals, 46 silver and 42 bronze totaling 189 medals; followed by Nigeria with 47 gold, 33 silver and 20 bronze totaling 120 medals; South Africa with 32 gold, 32 silver and 42 bronze totaling 106 medals; Algeria with 29 gold, 38 silver and 47 bronze totaling 114 medals and Tunisia in fifth 21 gold, 27 silver and 39 bronze totaling 87 medals.
Ghana followed in a respectable sixth position with 19 gold, 29 silver and 20 bronze to bag a total of 68 medals.
The hosting was Ghana’s first and the construction of multi-purpose state-of-the-art sports facilities would surely leave a long lasting memories with fans.
Apart from the facilities, the performance of certain teams and individuals would
is the Head Coach of the victorious national U-20 football team, the Black Satellites, Desmond Sakyi Ofei.
Ofei had come to the limelight following his appointment as the Head Coach of the Black Satellites; a team that had struggled to emerge from the wilderness for some time, having failed to make any serious impact on the football scene after their giant-killing feat in 2003 when they conquered all to become world champions.
That appointment may have appeared unattractive to other coaches as a result of the Satellites poor run but perhaps, with little or no recognition for local coaches, Ofei, assisted by Ghana’s U-17 legend Nii Odartey Lamptey grabbed the opportunity.
Together with other technical hands, they made the most of it by guiding the Black Satellites to Ghana’s second African Games male football gold with a late Jerry Afriyie strike over Uganda.
Ofei has since been credited for the good work with the Satellites team which he inherited from his former boss, Samuel Boadu whose last assignment was the WAFU Zone B U-20 Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire.
Under his watch, the team underwent some rebuilding, a process that saw the scouting of talents like Remember Boateng, Frederick Kesse, Michael Ephson, Mohaison Mahmoud and others to beef the squad.
In a few months’ time, he managed to turn the side into a winning one and showed promise in the games he played both in the tournament and preparatory ones towards it.
Within that period, every close follower of the team realises what the 36-year old Ofei, a UEFA Licence A holder brings to the table for the young, dynamic and upcoming local coaches. He was on point with his tactics which he changes based on what the opposition throws at him.
His relationship and communication with his charges is excellent. His connection with people working around him is also superb.
Ofei’s performance would surely reignite the debate about the need to involve the local coaches in building the national teams because they have something the foreign breed lacks.
IN modern football, the final whistle doesn’t signal the end of the show; it signals the intermission.
The Top five European Leagues (Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, and Ligue 1) have mastered a brutal truth of the digital age: you don’t just sell the match; you sell the marathon.
By weaponising transfer window tension, season reviews, and microscopic highlight reels, they’ve turned 90 minutes of sport into a 24/7/365 content vortex.
Meanwhile, back home, the Ghana Premier League (GPL) is haemorrhaging relevance not because the talent isn’t there but because the storytelling is dead.
The Football Association’s apathy is only rivalled by its hypocrisy.
The European Blueprint: Selling the ‘Appetite’
Why do fans tune into a random mid-table La Liga clash on a Friday night? Because they’ve been primed. Across the summer, broadcasters and clubs drip-feed ‘transfer sagas’ like high-stakes soap operas.
Will the star leave? Who is the mystery medical? This tension creates a parasocial investment that transcends the pitch.
Paired with this are season-review documentaries and hyper-curated game highlights tailored for TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. These aren’t just goal clips; they are tactical breakdowns, sideline theatrics, and VAR controversies packaged into digestible and emotional bites.
This strategy has inflated broadcasting rights to astronomical sums (the Premier League’s recent domestic deal hit £6.7 billion).
They know that if you feed the audience year-round, they will binge-watch when it matters.
The GPL Vacuum: No Sponsor, No Story
Now, overlay this blueprint onto the Ghana Premier League. It is a stark, barren contrast.
The league is poorly run, lacking a headline sponsor to give it financial muscle or marketing prestige. Without that corporate backing, the media machine grinds to a halt.
The transfer market, which should be the peak of offseason intrigue, is a ghost town. We hear about signings, but the transfer fee is universally undisclosed.” We only get the contract length.
This kills the narrative. In Europe, a €100 million move generates weeks of debate; in Ghana, a move generates a one-line social media post, devoid of gravity. Fans cannot gauge ambition, nor can they measure a club’s financial muscle.
Most damningly, there are no reviews from the broadcasting rights holders. No glossy season-compilation DVDs. No weekly magazine shows dissecting past campaigns to build hype for the next.
The Broadcasting Right Holders (BRHs) treat the GPL as an obligation to air live, not as an IP to monetize through content. The league goes dormant the moment the trophy is lifted.
And the FA? They seem unconcerned. There is no strategic blue • A scene from the Ghana Premier League print to pump these ‘stuffs’ into the digital ecosystem. They treat the league’s media output like an afterthought, ignoring that a lack of online noise equals a lack of bums on seats.
The Black Stars Paradox: The Hypocrisy of Production
Here is the crushing irony that exposes the FA’s priorities. When the Black Stars assemble for a World Cup qualifier or an AFCON match, the narrative flips overnight.
Suddenly, the budget for proper camera operators and videographers appears from thin air. We get cinematic drone shots, multi-angle slow-motion replays, tunnel cams, and emotional post-match interviews.
Every moment, every tackle, every save, every passionate fan in the stands is captured in vivid, broadcast-ready quality. The national team gets the full ‘European treatment.’
This reveals a devastating double standard. The FA treats the Black Stars as the sole marketable asset, forgetting that the GPL is the engine room that produces these stars.
By diverting all production value to the national team while starving the domestic league of visual prestige, they are cannibalizing their own foundation.
The Verdict
You cannot build a football culture on national team fixtures alone.
Europe thrives because they understand that content is the currency of fandom.
Until the Ghana FA secures a headline sponsor, enforces transparent transfer disclosures (to fuel debate), and mandates that broadcasting partners produce engaging season reviews and highlight packages, the GPL will remain a hidden gem rather than a sparkling crown.
The players are there. The passion is there. But if the FA continues to save its best camera angles for the Black Stars while leaving the Premier League in the dark, they aren’t just failing the clubs; they are starving the very appetite they desperately need to feed
By Leslie Agyemang
Accra Hearts of Oak and Dreams FC will headline Matchday 5 of the Ghana Premier League when the two sides meet at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium tomorrow, with both clubs seeking a result that could shape their early season campaign.
The encounter comes at a crucial moment for the two sides with the Phobians looking to recover from their first defeat of the campaign and Dreams still searching for their first victory after four matches.
The Rainbow lads started the season strongly but were beaten 1-0 by Karela United last weekend, while Dreams suffered a slim 1-0 defeat to Bechem United.
Hearts had earlier recorded impressive victories over Berekum Chelsea and Bibiani Gold Stars before drawing goalless with Bechem United, leaving the club with seven points from their opening four matches.
Their defeat at Karela United, however, means they will be under pressure to quickly return to winning ways against a Dreams side determined to make home advantage count.
Dreams, meanwhile, have endured a difficult beginning to the campaign and will see tomorrow’s fixture as an opportunity to change their fortunes.
The ‘Still Believe’ side have collected points from only their opening draws and are yet to register a victory, making the meeting with one of the country’s traditional giants an important test of their character.
Elsewhere, Vision FC will welcome Bibiani Gold Stars to the Nii Adjei Kraku II Sports Complex today, with both teams looking to strengthen their positions.
Vision have shown encouraging form in the early stages, while Gold Stars will be seeking a response after suffering a 2-0 home defeat to newcomers Port City FC.
At the Debibi Presby Park, newly promoted Debibi United will face defending champions Medeama SC tomorrow.
Medeama finally opened their account with a convincing 4-1 victory over Basake Holy Stars and will be hoping that the result marks the beginning of a stronger title defence.
Port City FC will continue their impressive debut campaign when they host Bechem United at the Daasebere Boamah Darko II Park.
Basake Holy Stars will attempt to recover from their heavy defeat to Medeama when they host Berekum Chelsea at the Ampain AAK II Sports Arena.
Aduana FC will welcome Swedru All Blacks to the Nana Agyemang Badu I Park after producing one of the weekend’s most notable results last Sunday.
At the Kpando Stadium, Heart of Lions will host FC AshantiGold ’04 in another meeting between sides coming off victories.
FC Samartex 1996 will meanwhile welcome Young Apostles FC to the Nsenkyire Sports Arena, with the home side seeking to maintain their unbeaten start to the campaign.
By Enoch Ntiamoah Siaw
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