Sports
Let the referees’ cash flow
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A PROPOSED amendment to extend the presidential term of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) obviously dominated conversations in the build up to the association’s 31st Ordinary Congress held at the Ghanaman Soccer Centre of Excellence in Prampram on Tuesday.
That particular move was very much criticised by people mostly outside the association.
The FA President, Kurt Okraku, was vilified and maligned by people hostile to the proposal, citing reasons including a desire to extend his stay in office although he was yet to make any such decision publicly.
But can the critics be faulted for their stance on the proposal? Obviously, the answer can be either yes or no.
That notwithstanding, football people voted massively at the Congress with about 10 voting against and abstaining. A total of 114 voted for the extension, indicating that the football people loves the idea.
In the next two years left on the current term, the unending conversation would switch to whether Okraku would consider a third term, a decision believed to have fuelled the proposal, or whether he would bow out.
However, Okraku’s response to whether he intends to continue or not must lay to rest the issue for now to digest some goodies announced at the Congress.
At a post Congress presser, Okraku stated that discussion on whether he would continue or not was premature.
That of course should apply the brakes on the discussion of the tenure extension to scrutinise some of the seemingly pleasant packages announced at the Congress.
The reward package announced for Ghana Premier League (GPL) was not just a novelty but very rewarding and mouthwatering.
For the first time in the history of the GPL, every club is set to pocket an amount of GH¢1m before kickoff.
Additionally, a total of GH¢9.5 million would be shared among the best performing teams in the competition, with the winners all the way to the 15th position expected to smile to bank after the season.
According to Mr Okraku, the winner of the 2025-26 Ghana Premier League (GPL) would get GH¢2 million while the runner-up would get GH¢1million.
The new merit award would also have the third place team receive GH¢800,000; fourth-placed team GH¢750,000; fifth placed-team GH¢700,000 and sixth-place team getting GH¢600,000.
Seventh-place team will pocket GH¢650,000; eighth-place team GH¢550,000; ninth placed-team GH¢500,000; 10th -place team GH¢450,000; 11th place team GH¢400,000; 12th place team GH¢350,000; 13th-place team GH¢300,000; 14th-place team GH¢250,000 and 15th-place taking GH¢200,000.
The good news is that the referees – who play an integral role in the success or otherwise of the competition, were not left out of the new FA windfall.
Beginning the 2025/26 football season, all 280 referees across the three major leagues –GPL, Division One League (DOL) and Women Premier League (WPL); will enjoy a huge insurance cover as individuals, as a group, critical illness, against permanent disability, medical expenses, and workmen’s compensation, among others.
What probably might interest the referees the more was the announcement of an enhanced financial incentive.
FIFA referees would be paid GH¢2,500.00 per game, while non-FIFA referees receive GH¢2,000.00 per game for GPL games. DOL and WPL referees will each take home GH¢1, 000.00.
In addition to these, referees will continue to enjoy a 50 per cent discount on travels via the FA’s partnership with STC plus other incentives.
Okraku’s administration deserves a pat on the shoulder for realising the need to bolster the referees who have often gone about their activities under very grim circumstances with many complaining of non-payment of their allowances.
Announcing these incentives must not just be a rhetoric. The FA must ensure that funds are readily available to make sure they are paid on time.
It is the hope of many that the stories about referees depending on their partners or friends as well as club officials before honouring their roles should be something of the past.
That would be the only way to sustain the hype around these incentives and justify the actions of football people that voted for the amendments that sought to suggest that Kurt Okraku is on his way to a third term.
By Andrew Nortey
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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