Meet the 11 Most Influential Figures in Ghana’s Football History of All Time
- A plethora of outstanding figures have shaped Ghana’s favourite sport into what it is today
- The list includes 2 iconic players, 3 distinguished coaches, and 1 remarkable political personality
- Ghana football would have hardly achieved success without the contributions of these people
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Ghana is reputed as one of Africa’s most prominent football nations, and the list of the 11 most influential figures in the country’s football history has been compiled to celebrate these exceptional names.
The Black Stars have won four AFCON titles while Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko have cliched a combined five CAF-organized competitions – 3 for the Phobians and 2 for the Porcupine Warriors.
Source: Getty Images
The Ghana national U20 men’s team made peerless history in 2009 when they became the first African team to win the FIFA U20 World Cup.
On top of that, the country has produced a myriad of great players and coaches whose diverse contributions made Ghana one of the foremost football destinations on the continent.
But who are the most outstanding 11 personalities in Ghana’s football history?
Yen.com.gh looks carefully into the country’s football chronicles to bring to the fore the 11 most important persons that have impacted the country’s No.1 game significantly.
We shall begin the countdown from 11 to one.
11.Milovan Rajevac
The Serbian trainer is, without a shred of doubt, the Black Stars’ best expatriate manager of all generations and merits a place on the pantheon of the most significant figures of Ghana’s football history.
Affectionately referred by Ghanaian fans as Milo, the gaffer took the Black Galaxies to the maiden African Nations Championship finale in 2009, unfortunately losing the trophy to DR. Congo.
Milovan Rajevac then exceeded expectations when he guided the Ghana national team to the 2010 World Cup quarter-finals, losing on penalties to Uruguay, installing Ghana as the third African team to reach that stage after Cameroon and Senegal.
10.Kwasi Nyantakyi
The former Ghana Football Association president would have definitely taken a higher position on this ranking but for his disgraceful behaviour in the Anas Number 12 football corruption exposé which led to FIFA banning him for life from the game in 2018.
Nevertheless, Kwasi Ntantakyi, who saw his life ban reduced to 15 years by CAS in October 2020, deserves a mention for some positives.
During Nyantakyi’s 13-year reign as GFA president, the Black Stars qualified for its maiden FIFA World Cup in 2006, and the Black Satellites became Africa’s first team to win the FIFA U20 World Cup in 2009.
9.Ben Koufie
The GFA has had lots of former chairmen and presidents, but it is for a special reason why the ‘’Five Year Development Plan’’ is synonymous with the former soccer brain.
Ben Koufie did not reach football’s highest level as a player, but he achieved significant recognition for his exceptional contributions as a coach and administrator.
The much talked about ‘’Five Year Development Plan’’, launched and spearheaded BY the then GFA chairman in 2001, was a game-changing strategy that produced talents such as Michael Essien, Sulley Muntari, and co.
8.Ibrahim Sunday
Back in the days when the world became interested in Ghana football, Sunday was one of the major reasons.
After earning respect as one of the most outstanding players in the land, winning several titles with Asante Kotoko, the legend became the first Ghanaian player to win the African Footballer of the Year award in 1971.
That was not all. Ibrahim Sunday went ahead to achieve another remarkable milestone when he became the first African footballer to appear in the German Bundesliga in 1975 at Werder Bremen.
7.Osam Duodu
A collection of the most key figures in Ghana’s football archives would not be complete without a berth for Osam Duodu, seen as one of the most renowned coaches and administrators the West African nation has ever had.
Duodo, who guided Ghana to glory in the 1978 Africa Cup of Nations, also served as a general secretary of the GFA. As a CAF and FIFA instructor, the football expert imparted his knowledge in a host of coaches across Africa.
6.Cecil Jones Attuquayefio
Attuquayefio sits respectably sixth on this list for his three African titles won with Accra Hearts of Oak which remains a record till date – 1 CAF Champions League in 2000, 1 CAF Super Cup in 2001, and 1 CAF Confederation Cup in 2004.
The former Ghana international midfielder and Black Stars assistant coach passed away in May 2015, but he has been immortalized by his matchless achievement.
Regarded as Ghana’s greatest ever club coach, Jones Attuquayefio, who won various domestic trophies, is not going have his record equalled by anyone anytime soon.
5. H.P Nyamitei
Henry Plange Nyamitei is one of Ghana football’s most impactful names for his effective leadership as the second GFA chairman.
He was GFA president between 1960 and 1966 during which time Ghana won its first two AFCON titles.
The former insurance worker, who was chief patron of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana, also played major role in shaping Hearts of Oak into a formidable side in the 60’s.
4. Ohene Djan
Perhaps, Kwame Nkrumah’s football vision would have only remained an imagination and a fantasy if he had not come into contact with the veteran football administrator, Ohene Djan.
Nkrumah had superb ideas to transform Ghana football, and the one who made them happen was the man the Accra Sports Stadium was renamed after some years ago.
After serving as the GFA’s first ever chairman, Ohene Djan became the country’s director of sports between 1960 and 1966, playing a pivotal role in Ghana’s AFCON triumphs in 1963 and 1965.
3. C.K Gyamfi
Respected as one of Africa’s finest coaching talents, Charles Kumi Gyamfi is adored as Ghana’s biggest coach of all time.
He led the Black Stars to African magnificence, securing the 1963, 1965, and 1982 Africa Cup of Nations.
C.K Gyamfi, who died in September 2015, remains one of the most dominant football figures in Ghana’s history.
2. Abedi Ayew
Arguably Ghana’s greatest player of all-time, Abedi’s high ranking has more to do with his three African Footballer of the Year awards and exploits in European football, winning the Champions League with Olympique Marseille in 1993.
The folk hero formed part of the Black Stars’ 1982 AFCON winning squad albeit he did not feature regularly at the tournament.
However, Abedi’s post-career influence on the game is quite limited. Apart from founding lower-tier side Nania FC, he has hardly held key management or technical positions in the country’s football.
Source: Getty Images
1. Kwame Nkrumah
Heading the list of the top 11 most influential figures in Ghana football’s history is Kwane Nkrumah, a true trailblazer whose substantial influence cut across both politics and sports.
The start of every success story is often not only challenging but also daunting. That is where Ghana’s first ever president made a difference with his unrivaled foresight and innovative acumen.
In this, he engineered the formation of Real Republicans, a model football team that composed of the two most talented players from each Ghana Premier League side, to form the core of the Black Stars. This yielded two AFCON cups on the spin, giving Ghana a solid historic beginning.
It is this winning formula and dedicated effort to make Ghana football the best on the continent that make Kwame Nkrumah the most influential figure in Ghana’s football history, though he had no background in the game.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
