President John Dramani Mahama has called on the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and football club administrators to urgently work together to improve the standard of domestic football and create a stronger pathway for young talents to develop before moving abroad.
The President said Ghana’s football system was losing promising players too early, weakening the quality of the local league and limiting the country’s ability to develop talent for the national teams.
“We are too quick to sell our players. As soon as a player shows promise, scouts take him away, mostly to Europe, and that depletes the quality of our local league,” the President stated.
He said clubs and football authorities must develop a system that allows young players to gain sufficient experience locally and compete at the international level before securing moves abroad.
“We must find a way to keep our talented players longer, give them opportunities in the national team, allow them to gain international experience, and then let them move abroad after they have matured.”
President Mahama also turned his attention to women’s football, arguing that Ghana’s investment in the women’s game should better reflect the success achieved by the country’s female teams.
“Our women have won more trophies for us than the men, and yet we put all the money into men’s football,” he noted.
He called for greater investment in women’s football and stronger support for the development of the national women’s teams.
“In the spirit of affirmative action, we must support women’s football and help bring the women’s teams up.”
The President made the remarks when he received a joint delegation from Ghana Premier League champions Medeama SC, Nations FC and Ampem Darkoa Ladies FC on a courtesy call.
His call comes amid wider concerns about the competitiveness of Ghana’s domestic league, player development and the ability of local clubs to retain emerging talents.
He also urged stakeholders to revive the Colts League, which has historically served as an important grassroots pathway for identifying and developing young footballers.
