Sports
Otto Addo sets sights on strong 2026 FIFA World Cup start
Otto Addo is taking a calm and focused approach to the World Cup after being drawn against England, Panama, and Croatia in Group L.
“I look forward to every game as special,” he told ghanafa.org.
“Very important for us that we don’t underrate any team. For sure, England is the favourite in that group,” he acknowledged. “But for me as a coach, to be honest, I’m looking at each and every game equally.”
Addo is particularly focused on getting a strong start against Panama. “I’m hoping that we have a good start against Panama, that will be very, very crucial,” he said. “It will make the other games a little bit more relaxed and easier for the players psychologically. We will use the window of March for test matches, and then see,” he said.
Despite being a young team, Addo is proud of his squad’s progress. “I think we did very well in the qualifiers ” he said. “We didn’t lose a single official game, like the qualifying games, we did very well. We just played one draw and the rest we won, so we had quite a good year in 2025, after a bad year in 2024’’.
“Even though we have a very young team, we really, really did well, had a good harmony in the team, good union,” he added.
Ghana will open their FIFA World Cup campaign against Panama in Toronto on June 17 before facing England and Croatia in the other Group L matches on June 23 and 27 respectively.
Ashantigold SC has terminated the contracts of three members of its technical team with immediate effect.
The affected officials are head coach and technical director Abdul Karim Zito, assistant coach Ernest Okyere, and goalkeepers’ trainer Robert Dabo.
The decision was announced in a statement signed by the club’s Chief Executive Officer, Edward Kwasi Akuoko.
According to the statement, the decision was taken following a consultative meeting by the Interim Management Committee on Monday, October 26, 2026.
The club says a caretaker coach has been appointed to steer the affairs of the team until a substantive coach/technical director is appointed.
Management expressed gratitude to the affected officials for their contribution and service to the team and wished them well in their future endeavours.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
England captain Harry Kane says it was extra special to be presented with the Ballon d’Or by one of his childhood idols.
Kane made the comment after receiving the prestigious award from former Brazilian striker Ronaldo Nazario.
“Ronaldo was one of my idols growing up,” Kane said.
The Bayern Munich striker described the moment as surreal, being honoured by a player he looked up to as a young footballer.
Kane was announced as the 2026 Ballon d’Or winner on Monday, October 26, at the London Palladium, marking the 70th anniversary of the award and the first time the ceremony was held outside France.
The 33-year-old beat stiff competition from second-placed Kylian Mbappe and Barcelona youngster Lamine Yamal to win his first ever Ballon d’Or.
He becomes the first Englishman to win the coveted individual award in 25 years since Michael Owen in 2001, and only the fifth Englishman ever after Stanley Matthews, Bobby Charlton, Kevin Keegan and Owen.
He is also the first Bayern Munich player to win the award since Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in 1981.
Kane won the award after a remarkable season in which he scored 61 goals in 51 club matches, the most a Bayern player has ever scored in one campaign.
Including England matches, it was 73 goals plus eight assists in 65 matches. His 73 goals is the second-highest single-season total ever behind Lionel Messi’s 82 in 2011-12.
Despite the goal haul, Kane did not win the Champions League or World Cup, with Bayern losing 6-5 on aggregate to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semi-finals and England losing 2-1 to Argentina in the World Cup semi-final before finishing third.
The award was presented by Brazilian great Ronaldo Nazario, a two-time Ballon d’Or winner himself, adding what was described as a special dimension to Kane’s historic achievement.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
