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Ghana national football team facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
This page is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Ghana women's national football team.
Quick facts for kids
Ghana
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s) Black Stars
Association Ghana Football Association
Confederation CAF (Africa)
Sub-confederation WAFU (West Africa)
Head coach Otto Addo
Captain André Ayew
Most caps André Ayew (120)
Top scorer Asamoah Gyan (51)
Home stadium Various
FIFA code GHA
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 52 Decrease 1 (7 February 2019)
Highest 14 (April–May 2007, February 2008)
Lowest 89 (June 2004)
Elo ranking
Current 51 Increase 4 (3 March 2019)
Highest 13 (30 June 1966)
Lowest 97 (14 June 2004)
First international
 Gold Coast and United Kingdom British Togoland 1–0 Nigeria 
(Accra, British Gold Coast; 28 May 1950)
Biggest win
 Nyasaland 0–12 Gold Coast 
(Nyasaland; 15 October 1962)
Biggest defeat
 Brazil 8–2 Ghana 
(São José do Rio Preto, Brazil; 27 March 1996)
World Cup
Appearances 4 (first in 2006)
Best result Quarter-finals (2010)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances 24 (first in 1963)
Best result Champions (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982)
West African Nations Cup / WAFU Nations Cup
Appearances 8 (first in 1982)
Best result Champions (1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 2013)
COSAFA Cup
Appearances 1 (first in 2015)
Best result Quarter-finals (2015)

The Ghana national football team represents Ghana in men's international football. The team is named the Black Stars after the Black Star of Africa in the flag of Ghana. It is governed by the Ghana Football Association, the governing body for football in Ghana. Prior to 1957, it played as the Gold Coast.

Ghana qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 2006. The team has won the Africa Cup of Nations four times (1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982), while finishing as runners-up five times (1968, 1970, 1992, 2010, and 2015). They have also qualified for the CHAN four times, finishing as runners-up twice (2009 and 2014).

The Official Jersey colours for the Black Stars and other national teams of Ghana are White for home games and Yellow for away games. This new colours was unveiled by the Official kits maker for Ghana National football teams PUMA in November 2024

History

On 19 August 1962 at the Accra Sports Stadium, hosted Real Madrid, who were at the time Spanish champions, former European champions and intercontinental champions and drew 3–3.

Charles Kumi Gyamfi became coach in 1961, and they won successive African Cup of Nations titles, in 1963 and 1965. The Black Stars achieved their record win, 13–2 away to Kenya, after the second of these. They reached the final of the tournament in 1968 and 1970, losing 1–0 on both occasions, to DR Congo in 1968 and Sudan in 1970. Their domination of the tournament earned them the nickname "the Black Stars of Africa" in the 1960s.

Fortunes changed for the Black Stars however, after they failed to qualify for 3 successive African Cup of Nations in the 1970s. In the early 1980s however, with emerging talents such as Abedi Pele, the Black Stars beat Libya in the 1982 African Cup of Nations final hosted by Libya to win their fourth and to date, last continental title. Fortunes changed again however, as in the 1984 tournament, they were knocked out in the group stages, and did not qualify for the 1986, 1988 and 1990 tournaments. In 1992 however, the Black Stars would come runners-up to the Ivory Coast in a penalty shootout after a goalless draw, which saw every player on the pitch take a penalty, in which they were beaten 11-10. The Black Stars were at a disadvantage however, as African Footballer of the Year winner and the tournament's best player, Abedi Pele, had been suspended for the final.

Tensions among the squad led to the parliamentary and executive to intervene and settle issues between star players Abedi Pele and Tony Yeboah. In the 1990s, this may have played some part in the failure of the team to build on the successes of the national underage teams. However, the generation of Black Stars players who went to the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship final became the "core" of the team at the 2002 African Cup of Nations, going undefeated for a year in 2005 and qualifying for the final tournament of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The Black Stars started by succumbing to a 2–0 defeat to eventual champions Italy, and wins over Czech Republic (2–0) and United States (2–1). This saw them advance through to the second round, where they lost 3–0 to Brazil.

Under head coach Milovan Rajevac, the Black Stars went on to secure a 100% win record in their qualification campaign, winning their group and becoming the first African team to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In the final tournament, they were placed in Group D with Germany, Serbia and Australia, advancing to the round of 16 where they played the United States, winning 2–1 in extra time to become only the third African nation to reach the World Cup quarter-finals. They then lost to Uruguay in a penalty shootout in the quarter-finals, after Uruguayan forward Luis Suárez blocked a header with his hand in the penalty box in extra time and was sent off. Asamoah Gyan missed the penalty given for the handball, with the score remaining at 1-1. Ghana went on to lose the penalty shootout 4-2, not making it to the semi-finals which would have been the first time an African country qualified for the semi-finals of a World Cup.

In 2013, it became the only team in Africa to reach 4 consecutive semi-finals of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations twice, the first time since between 1963 and 1970.

The Black Stars were sufficiently ranked by FIFA to start their qualifying for the 2014 World Cup in the second round. They won their group, and in the following round qualified for the 2014 World Cup finals in November 2013, after beating Egypt 7–3 on aggregate in a 2-legged play-off. They were drawn in Group G for the finals, where they faced Germany, Portugal, and the United States. They exited in the group stages recording 1 draw and 2 losses. However, they were the only team to not lose to Germany in the tournament, and the only team to hold onto a lead against the Germans at any point, drawing 2-2 (and leading 2-1) with the eventual winners.

In the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, they reached the final, to be denied the title on penalties against Ivory Coast. While their 2017 Africa Cup of Nations campaign ended in a 4th place finish - the third one in 4 consecutive editions of the tournament - in the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, they finished behind Egypt and Uganda in their final group. At the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, they were eliminated by Tunisia in the Round of 16. In 2021, Manager Rajevac was brought back, but the Black Stars ended up failing to win a match at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations where they lost 2–3 to debutants the Comoros after an André Ayew red card to finish bottom of their group. Thus, they failed to progress beyond the group stage for the first time since 2006. They drew 0–0 in a match against Nigeria and drew 1–1 in Nigeria to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup on away goals. During the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Ghana lost their first match against Portugal (3–2). They earned their first and only victory in their second match against South Korea 3–2 after an insane thriller. In a "must win match to qualify" against Uruguay, the opponent that kicked out Ghana 12 years ago, Ghana instead lost 2–0 and thus finished bottom; however, despite failing to avenge the loss, South Korea's 2–1 win over Portugal ensured Ghana to have a consolation prize by also sending out Uruguay from the competition on the virtue of goals scored.

Ghana was shockingly failed to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, as they finished in the bottom of the group below Angola, Sudan, and Niger. Making The Black Stars for the first time since 2004, will missed out the AFCON tournament.

Culture

Kits and crest

Black Stars (Ghana national football team) Jersey 1970s—1980s
Home shirt: 1970s–1980s

Adopted following the independence of Ghana in 1957, the black star has been included in the Black Stars' kits. The Black Stars' kits were sponsored by Puma SE from 2005, with the deal ending in 2014.

Ghana national football team (Black Stars) badge and national anthem
Badge and anthem

Between 1990 and 2006 the Ghana national team used the kit in the colours of the national flag of Ghana, with gold, green and red used, as in the team's crest and also known as the Pan-African colours. The gold with green and red kit concept and design was used in the 60s and 70s, and designed with gold and green vertical stripes and red shoulders. An all black second kit was introduced in 2008 and in 2015, Black Stars' gold-red-green coloured kit and all black coloured kit is to be reassigned to the position of 1st and 2nd kits following the induction of a brown with blue and gold coloured Black Stars 3rd kit in 2012.

The team's kit for the 2014 FIFA World Cup was ranked as the best kit of the tournament by BuzzFeed.

Ghana home kit 2008.svg
Ghana away kit 2008.svg
2008 Africa Cup of Nations 1st and 2nd kits
Kit supplier Period
Germany Erima 1991–1992
Germany Adidas 1992–2000
Italy Kappa 2000–2005
Germany Puma 2005–

Grounds

Kumasi Sports Stadium
Lizzy Sports Complex

The training facilities and training grounds are located at Agyeman Badu Stadium, Berekum Sports Stadium in Brong-Ahafo, the Tema Sports Stadium in Tema and the multi-functional Lizzy Sports Complex in Legon.

Organization and finance

The Black Stars had no official head because of "corrupt" practices by the then president, Kwesi Nyantakyi and vice-president George Afriyie, with Frank Davis as director of football, and Edward Bawa as treasurer. The Ghana Football Association (GFA) signed a CN¥92.2 million (US$15 million) deal with Ghanaian state-run oil and gas exploration corporation, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), to sponsor the Black Stars and the renewable contract saw the oil and gas exploration corporation become the global headline sponsor of the Black Stars, with a yearly Black Stars player salary wage bill, following the gold mining corporations Ashanti Goldfields Corporation and Goldfields Ghana Limited (GGL), which had been sponsoring the Black Stars since 2005.

On 28 August 2013, Ghana Football Association (GFA) launched a TV channel and named GFA TV. The channel has the exclusive rights to broadcast all the Black Stars' matches. In November 2013, the Black Stars signed a 2013–2015 CN¥30.6 million (US$5 million) and an additional classified multi-million private bank sponsorship deal with the Ghanaian state-run private banking institution UniBank.

Supporters

ACON 2015 GHA GUI (16512008192)
Ghana Supporters Union at an AFCON 2015 match between Ghana and Guinea

The Black Stars maintain an average stadium match attendance of 60,000+ and a match attendance high of 80,000+, such as in the case of its 2010 FIFA World Cup quarter-final against Uruguay which was attended by 84,017 spectators. Ghana's match against England on 29 March 2011 had the largest away following for any association football national team since the re-opening of Wembley Stadium in 2007. The match was watched by 700 million people around the world.

Following the team's appearances at the 2006 and 2010 World Cup tournaments, they were greeted by some hundred avid fans dancing and singing at Kotoka International Airport in Accra.

Rivalries

Main article: Jollof derby
Sulley
Vs. Nigeria in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations Quarter-Final

A rivalry is with the Super Eagles, the Nigeria national team. The "Battle of Supremacy on the Gulf of Guinea" is between two of the "most successful teams on the African continent". The proximity of the two countries to each other, a dispute between the different association football competitions and wider diplomatic competition for influence across West Africa add to this rivalry. The match between these two countries is called the Jollof derby.

Other rivalries include the rivalry with Egypt and international rivalries with USA as well as Uruguay.

Media and arts

Match schedules are broadcast in English as in the case of inter-continental matches and in Akan nationally by Adom TV, PeaceFM, AdomFM and HappyFM. During the scheduled qualification for the 2014 World Cup national broadcaster GTV, a sub-division of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), broadcast to the Ghanaian public home qualifiers with away qualifiers broadcast by the satellite television broadcasting corporation Viasat 1. The friendly match against Turkey in August 2013 was televised by Viasat 1 and the qualifiers for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2018 Inter-Continental Championships are scheduled for public broadcast by the corporations GFA TV, GBC and Viasat 1.

Products including books, documentary films, Azonto dances and songs have been made in the name of the team. These may be intended with commercial motives and are focused on previous and future World Cups or Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.

  • Books: books have been published on the team's history and participation in tournaments. These include Ghana, The Rediscovered Soccer Might: Watch Out World!, about the history and performance of the Black Stars and association football national teams that the Black Stars have played against, and The Black Stars of Ghana by Alan Whelan; about Black Stars commencing their progress through the final rounds of the 2010 World Cup and into the quarter-finals.
  • Documentary films: In 2010 Miracle Films Ghana Limited showcased a vintage documentary film picture, Kwame Nkrumah & Ghana's Black Stars, about Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah "Africa's man of the 2nd millennium" and "Pan-African pioneer", who invested energy into making Ghana's association football national team – the Black Stars – a force in African soccer.
  • Nickname: The Black Star Line, a shipping industry line incorporated by the founder of the Back-to-Africa movement, civil rights movement leader Marcus Garvey and the organiser of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA) from 1919 to 1922, gives the Ghana team its nicknames, the Black Stars of West Africa and the Black Stars of Africa.
  • Dances: upon the Black Stars scoring against opposition teams, dance forms of the Ghanaian Azonto were performed by Black Stars players in their goal celebrations in match victories at the 2010 World Cup and in 2013, an elite dance version of the Ghanaian Azonto named; "(Akan: Mmonko)" (shrimp), was established and showcased at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations by the Black Stars players. Black Stars goal celebrations in match victories at the 2014 World Cup and upon scoring against opposition teams, are to establish and showcase Alkayida.
  • Songs: On occasions of past World Cups or African Championships, a number of musicians with music producers created hiplife football songs which were composed in the Akan language – the 2006 World Cup song, "Akan: Tuntum Nsorom Ye Ko Yen Anim", (Black Stars, We are moving forward) musical composed by the Musicians Union of Ghana, is to motivate the Black Stars to perform creditably in its quest for the capturing of the World Cup trophy. Black Stars' captain and top-goalscorer Asamoah Gyan recorded and released a Hiplife song with 'Castro The Destroyer', where he features under the alias 'Baby Jet'. The song is entitled "African Girls" and is sung in the Akan language and was launched onto the Ghanaian screens, continental West Africa screens and onto the Sub-Saharan Africa screens. The music video shows the "Asamoah Gyan Dance" goal celebration which he demonstrated at the 2010 World Cup. The song "African Girls" won an award at the Ghana Music Awards in 2011. The 2010 World Cup song, "Ghana Black Stars (Official Song 2010 World Cup)" composed by Ghanaian hiplife music group "Kings and Queens Entertainment" approved by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) as GFA has indicated that the Black Stars are a protected brand.

Results and fixtures

Main article: Ghana national football team results (2020–present)

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

      Win       Draw       Loss       Fixture

2023

2024

2025

Coaches

Position Name
Head coach Ghana Otto Addo
Assistant coach Morocco Joseph Laumann
Assistant coach Ghana John Paintsil
Goalkeeping coach Ghana Fatau Dauda

History

See also: Ghana national football team manager
Ghana national team u-21
Mali vs Ghana, exhibition game at Paris, 31 March 2015

Since 1957 it has had 32 different head coaches and 3 caretakers. C. K. Gyamfi led the Black Stars to 3 Africa Cup of Nations titles – in 1963, 1965 and 1982 – making Gyamfi the "joint most successful coach" in the competition's history. Fred Osam Duodu led the Black Stars to their 1978 Africa Cup of Nations title; Ratomir Dujković, Milovan Rajevac, and James Kwesi Appiah have led the Black Stars to World Cup qualification. Two Serbian managers guided Ghana to their first two World Cup appearances. Otto Addo is the head coach of the Black Stars since 15 March 2024, replacing Chris Hughton.

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Angola and Niger on 15 and 18 November 2024.

Caps and goals correct as of 18 November 2024, after the match against Angola.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Lawrence Ati-Zigi (1996-11-29) 29 November 1996 (age 28) 27 0 Switzerland St. Gallen
1GK Jojo Wollacott (1996-09-08) 8 September 1996 (age 28) 12 0 Scotland Hibernian
1GK Abdul Manaf Nurudeen (1999-02-08) 8 February 1999 (age 25) 5 0 Belgium Eupen
2DF Alexander Djiku (1994-08-09) 9 August 1994 (age 30) 31 2 Turkey Fenerbahçe
2DF Gideon Mensah (1998-07-18) 18 July 1998 (age 26) 29 0 France Auxerre
2DF Alidu Seidu (2000-06-04) 4 June 2000 (age 24) 20 1 France Rennes
2DF Tariq Lamptey (2000-09-30) 30 September 2000 (age 24) 11 0 England Brighton & Hove Albion
2DF Jerome Opoku (1998-10-14) 14 October 1998 (age 26) 3 1 Turkey İstanbul Başakşehir
2DF Jonas Adjetey (2003-12-13) 13 December 2003 (age 21) 1 0 Switzerland Basel
2DF Razak Simpson (1998-07-15) 15 July 1998 (age 26) 1 0 Ghana Nations
2DF Nathaniel Adjei (2002-08-21) 21 August 2002 (age 22) 0 0 France Lorient
2DF Isaac Afful (1999-04-01) 1 April 1999 (age 25) 0 0 Ghana Samartex
3MF Mohammed Kudus (2000-08-02) 2 August 2000 (age 24) 39 11 England West Ham United
3MF Elisha Owusu (1997-11-07) 7 November 1997 (age 27) 15 0 France Auxerre
3MF Ibrahim Sulemana (2003-05-22) 22 May 2003 (age 21) 4 0 Italy Atalanta
3MF Michael Baidoo (1999-05-14) 14 May 1999 (age 25) 3 0 Sweden Elfsborg
3MF Abu Francis (2001-04-27) 27 April 2001 (age 23) 1 0 Belgium Cercle Brugge
3MF Emmanuel Antwi (2000-01-08) 8 January 2000 (age 24) 0 0 Ghana Great Olympics
4FW Jordan Ayew (1991-09-11) 11 September 1991 (age 33) 109 29 England Leicester City
4FW Antoine Semenyo (2000-01-07) 7 January 2000 (age 24) 25 2 England Bournemouth
4FW Abdul Fatawu (2004-03-08) 8 March 2004 (age 20) 24 2 England Leicester City
4FW Iñaki Williams (1994-06-15) 15 June 1994 (age 30) 21 1 Spain Athletic Bilbao
4FW Joseph Paintsil (1998-02-01) 1 February 1998 (age 26) 16 0 United States LA Galaxy
4FW Ernest Nuamah (2003-11-01) 1 November 2003 (age 21) 15 3 France Lyon
4FW Ibrahim Osman (2004-11-29) 29 November 2004 (age 20) 2 0 Netherlands Feyenoord

Recent call-ups

The following have also been called up in the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Fredrick Asare (1999-05-28) 28 May 1999 (age 25) 0 0 Ghana Asante Kotoko v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
GK Richard Ofori (1993-11-01) 1 November 1993 (age 31) 33 0 South Africa Orlando Pirates 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
GK Benjamin Asare (1992-07-13) 13 July 1992 (age 32) 0 0 Ghana Great Olympics 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK Felix Kyei (2003-03-13) 13 March 2003 (age 21) 0 0 Ghana Medeama 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Mohammed Salisu (1999-04-17) 17 April 1999 (age 25) 17 2 France Monaco v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
DF Kingsley Schindler (1993-07-12) 12 July 1993 (age 31) 5 0 Turkey Samsunspor v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
DF Abdul Mumin (1998-06-06) 6 June 1998 (age 26) 4 0 Spain Rayo Vallecano v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
DF Ebenezer Annan (2002-08-21) 21 August 2002 (age 22) 3 0 Serbia OFK Beograd v.  Niger, 9 September 2024
DF Baba Rahman (1994-07-02) 2 July 1994 (age 30) 52 1 Greece PAOK v.  Central African Republic, 10 June 2024
DF Daniel Amartey (1994-12-21) 21 December 1994 (age 30) 55 0 Turkey Beşiktaş v.  Uganda, 26 March 2024
DF Denis Odoi (1988-05-27) 27 May 1988 (age 36) 14 0 Belgium Club Brugge v.  Uganda, 26 March 2024
DF Nicholas Opoku (1997-08-11) 11 August 1997 (age 27) 18 1 France Amiens 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
DF Abdul Fatawu Hamidu (1999-03-04) 4 March 1999 (age 25) 1 0 Ghana Medeama 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
DF Kasim Adams (1995-06-22) 22 June 1995 (age 29) 17 2 Germany 1899 Hoffenheim 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Andy Yiadom (1991-12-02) 2 December 1991 (age 33) 16 0 England Reading 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Joseph Larweh Attamah (1994-05-22) 22 May 1994 (age 30) 6 0 Turkey Kayserispor 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Stephan Ambrosius (1998-12-18) 18 December 1998 (age 26) 2 0 Germany Karlsruher SC 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Patrick Kpozo (1997-07-15) 15 July 1997 (age 27) 2 0 Czech Republic Baník Ostrava 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF Abdulai Nurudeen (2004-08-01) 1 August 2004 (age 20) 0 0 Ghana Medeama 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Thomas Partey (1993-06-13) 13 June 1993 (age 31) 51 13 England Arsenal v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
MF Majeed Ashimeru (1997-10-10) 10 October 1997 (age 27) 11 0 Belgium Anderlecht v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
MF Salis Abdul Samed (2000-03-26) 26 March 2000 (age 24) 19 0 France Lens v.  Central African Republic, 10 June 2024
MF Edmund Addo (2000-05-17) 17 May 2000 (age 24) 14 0 Serbia OFK Beograd v.  Central African Republic, 10 June 2024
MF André Ayew (captain) (1989-12-17) 17 December 1989 (age 35) 120 24 France Le Havre v.  Uganda, 26 March 2024
MF Iddrisu Baba (1996-01-22) 22 January 1996 (age 28) 29 0 Spain Almería 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer (2001-09-13) 13 September 2001 (age 23) 5 0 Germany Hamburger SV 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF Richmond Lamptey (1997-03-18) 18 March 1997 (age 27) 1 0 Ghana Asante Kotoko 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF Daniel Afriyie (2001-06-26) 26 June 2001 (age 23) 6 4 Switzerland Zürich 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Yaw Yeboah (1997-03-28) 28 March 1997 (age 27) 4 0 United States Columbus Crew 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Forson Amankwah (2002-12-31) 31 December 2002 (age 21) 2 0 England Norwich City 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF Godfred Atuahene (2002-10-10) 10 October 2002 (age 22) 0 0 Ghana Dreams 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Brandon Thomas-Asante (1998-12-28) 28 December 1998 (age 25) 2 0 England Coventry City v.  Sudan, 15 October 2024
FW Kamaldeen Sulemana (2002-02-15) 15 February 2002 (age 22) 19 0 England Southampton v.  Central African Republic, 10 June 2024
FW Osman Bukari (1998-12-13) 13 December 1998 (age 26) 18 3 United States Austin FC v.  Central African Republic, 10 June 2024
FW Jonathan Sowah (2000-01-09) 9 January 2000 (age 24) 3 0 Ghana Medeama 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
FW Benjamin Tetteh (1997-07-10) 10 July 1997 (age 27) 7 0 France Metz 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Bernard Tekpetey (1997-09-03) 3 September 1997 (age 27) 2 0 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW John Antwi (1992-08-06) 6 August 1992 (age 32) 2 0 Ghana Dreams 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Hafiz Konkoni (1999-12-27) 27 December 1999 (age 24) 0 0 Tanzania Young Africans 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
FW Derrick Fordjour (2002-06-21) 21 June 2002 (age 22) 0 0 Ghana Medeama 2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
Notes
  • CNC Cancelled match.
  • WD Withdrew.
  • INJ Withdrew because of injury.
  • PRE Preliminary squad.
  • RET Retired from international football.
  • SUS Suspended from the team.

Local team

Main article: Ghana A' national football team

The football association of Ghana (GFA) administers national teams at different levels, including 1 for the local national team. The team is restricted to players who only play in the local league, thus the Ghana Premier League. It is nicknamed Local Black Stars.

Records

Players in bold are still active with Ghana.

Most appearances

20150331 Mali vs Ghana 170
André Ayew is Ghana's most capped player with 120 appearances.
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 André Ayew 120 24 2007–present
2 Asamoah Gyan 109 51 2003–2019
3 Jordan Ayew 108 28 2010–present
4 Richard Kingson 93 1 1996–2011
5 John Paintsil 91 0 2001–2013
6 Harrison Afful 86 0 2008–2018
7 Sulley Muntari 84 20 2002–2014
8 John Mensah 81 3 2001–2012
9 Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu 78 11 2008–2017
10 Kwadwo Asamoah 74 4 2008–2019

Top goalscorers

Gyan AfCON 2015
Asamoah Gyan is Ghana's top goalscorer with 51 goals.
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Asamoah Gyan 51 109 0.47 2003–2019
2 Edward Acquah 45 41 1.1 1956–1964
3 Kwasi Owusu 36 45 0.8 1968–1976
4 Tony Yeboah 29 59 0.49 1985–1997
5 Jordan Ayew 28 108 0.26 2010–present
6 Karim Abdul Razak 25 62 0.4 1975–1988
7 André Ayew 24 120 0.2 2007–present
8 Wilberforce Mfum 20 26 0.77 1960–1968
Sulley Muntari 20 84 0.24 2002–2014
10 Osei Kofi 19 25 0.76 1964–1973
Abedi Pele 19 73 0.26 1982–1998

Captains

  • Awuley Quaye (1978)
  • Kuuku Dadzie (1980–1982)
  • Emmanuel Quarshie (1982–1984)
  • Isaac Paha (1984)
  • James Kwesi Appiah (1984–1992)
  • Abedi Pele (1992–1998)
  • Charles Akonnor (1999–2001)
  • Stephen Appiah (2002–2010)
  • John Mensah (2010–2012)
  • Asamoah Gyan (2012–2019)
  • André Ayew (2019–)

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

Main article: Ghana at the FIFA World Cup
Black Stars (World Cup)
At the 2006 World Cup and vs. Uruguay in the 2010 FIFA World Cup quarter-final match at Soccer City, Johannesburg on 2 July 2010

Ghana have qualified for 4 FIFA World Cup tournaments; 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2022. In 2006, it was the only African side to advance to the second round of the World Cup in Germany, and was the 6th nation in a row from Africa to progress beyond the group stages of the World Cup. It had the youngest team in the 2006 edition with an average age of 23 years and 352 days, and were praised for their improving performance. FIFA ranked it 13th out of the 32 countries who competed in the tournament.

In the 2010 World Cup, it progressed beyond the group stages of the World Cup in South Africa, and reached the quarter-finals where it was eliminated by Uruguay. It was defeated on penalty shootout after Luis Suárez hand-balled on the goal line into extra time, preventing a possible winning goal. Of the 32 countries that participated in the 2010 edition, FIFA ranked it 7th.

After beating Egypt 7–3 on aggregate in November 2013, it qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. It was drawn in Group G with Germany, United States and Portugal. For the first time, it fell in the group stage, tying Germany 2–2 and losing to the United States and Portugal by 2–1.

Round Pld W D L GF GA GD
World Cup Finals 15 5 3 7 18 23 −5
World Cup Quals (H) 34 24 8 2 78 19 +59
World Cup Quals (A) 33 9 8 16 37 42 −5
Total 82 38 19 25 133 84 +49
FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA Campaign
1930 to 1954 Part of United Kingdom Part of United Kingdom
Sweden 1958 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
Chile 1962 Did not qualify 2 1 1 0 2 0 1962
England 1966 Withdrew Withdrew
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974 Did not qualify 6 3 1 1 14 5 1974
Argentina 1978 3 1 0 2 3 5 1978
Spain 1982 Withdrew Withdrew
Mexico 1986
Italy 1990 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 0 2 1990
United States 1994 4 2 0 2 4 3 1994
France 1998 8 2 4 2 9 8 1998
South Korea Japan 2002 12 4 3 4 10 11 2002
Germany 2006 Round of 16 13th 4 2 0 2 4 6 Squad 12 8 3 1 24 4 2006
South Africa 2010 Quarter-finals 7th 5 2 2 1 5 4 Squad 12 8 1 3 20 8 2010
Brazil 2014 Group stage 25th 3 0 1 2 4 6 Squad 8 6 0 2 25 6 2014
Russia 2018 Did not qualify 8 2 5 1 9 5 2018
Qatar 2022 Group stage 24th 3 1 0 2 5 7 Squad 8 4 3 1 8 4 2022
Canada Mexico United States 2026 Qualification in progress 4 3 0 1 7 5 2026
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined To be determined 2030
Saudi Arabia 2034 2034
Total Quarter-finals 4/16 15 5 3 7 18 23 – 89 44 22 21 135 66

Africa Cup of Nations

Main article: Ghana at the Africa Cup of Nations
ACON 2015 GHA GUI (16511976922)
At the 2015 AFCON vs. Guinea in the quarter-finals.

The Black Stars of Ghana have won the Africa Cup of Nations four times: in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982, bettered only by Cameroon and Egypt. As the first winner of three AFCON tournaments, Ghana obtained the right to permanently hold the trophy in 1978.

In November 2024, following the 1–1 draw with Angola, Ghana failed to qualify for AFCON 2025 for the first time since 2004.

Africa Cup of Nations record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Squad Pld W D* L GF GA Campaign
Sudan 1957 Not affiliated to CAF Not affiliated to CAF
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962 Did not qualify 2 0 2 0 2 2 1962
Ghana 1963 Champions 1st 3 2 1 0 6 1 Squad Qualified as hosts
Tunisia 1965 Champions 1st 3 3 0 0 12 5 Squad Qualified as defending champions
Ethiopia 1968 Runners-up 2nd 5 3 1 1 11 8 Squad Qualified as defending champions
Sudan 1970 Runners-up 2nd 5 2 2 1 6 4 Squad 2 2 0 0 15 1 1970
Cameroon 1972 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 0 1 1972
Egypt 1974 4 1 0 3 3 7 1974
Ethiopia 1976 4 2 0 2 7 5 1976
Ghana 1978 Champions 1st 5 4 1 0 9 2 Squad Qualified as hosts
Nigeria 1980 Group stage 5th 3 1 1 1 1 1 Squad Qualified as defending champions
Libya 1982 Champions 1st 5 2 3 0 7 5 Squad 4 2 2 0 6 4 1982
Ivory Coast 1984 Group stage 6th 3 1 0 2 2 4 Squad Qualified as defending champions
Egypt 1986 Did not qualify 4 1 2 1 5 4 1986
Morocco 1988 2 0 1 1 1 2 1988
Algeria 1990 2 1 0 1 1 1 1990
Senegal 1992 Runners-up 2nd 5 4 1 0 6 2 Squad 8 5 2 1 11 2 1992
Tunisia 1994 Quarter-finals 5th 3 2 0 1 3 2 Squad 2 2 0 0 3 0 1994
South Africa 1996 Fourth place 4th 6 4 0 2 7 5 Squad 4 3 0 1 9 3 1996
Burkina Faso 1998 Group stage 11th 3 1 0 2 3 3 Squad 4 2 1 1 4 3 1998
Ghana Nigeria 2000 Quarter-finals 8th 4 1 1 2 3 4 Squad Qualified as hosts
Mali 2002 7th 4 1 2 1 2 2 Squad 6 4 1 1 16 8 2002
Tunisia 2004 Did not qualify 4 1 1 2 5 5 2004
Egypt 2006 Group stage 10th 3 1 0 2 2 3 Squad 10 6 3 1 17 4 2006
Ghana 2008 Third place 3rd 6 5 0 1 11 5 Squad Qualified as hosts
Angola 2010 Runners-up 2nd 5 3 0 2 4 4 Squad 12 8 1 3 20 8 2010
Gabon Equatorial Guinea 2012 Fourth place 4th 6 3 1 2 6 5 Squad 6 5 1 0 13 1 2012
South Africa 2013 Fourth place 4th 6 3 2 1 10 6 Squad 2 2 0 0 3 0 2013
Equatorial Guinea 2015 Runners-up 2nd 6 4 1 1 10 3 Squad 6 3 2 1 11 7 2015
Gabon 2017 Fourth place 4th 6 3 0 3 4 5 Squad 6 4 2 0 14 3 2017
Egypt 2019 Round of 16 12th 4 1 3 0 5 3 Squad 4 3 0 1 8 1 2019
Cameroon 2021 Group stage 19th 3 0 1 2 3 5 Squad 6 4 1 1 9 3 2021
Ivory Coast 2023 17th 3 0 2 1 5 6 Squad 6 3 3 0 8 3 2023
Morocco 2025 Did not qualify 6 0 3 3 3 7 2025
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027 To be determined To be determined
2029
Total 4 Titles 24/35 105 54 23 28 138 93 – 118 64 29 25 194 85
*Draws include matches decided by penalty shoot-out.

West African Nations Cup and WAFU Nations Cup

Olympic Games

Olympic Games record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
1900 to 1956 Part of United Kingdom
Italy Rome 1960 Did not qualify
Japan Tokyo 1964 Quarter-finals 7th 4 1 1 2 7 12 Squad
Mexico Mexico 1968 Group stage 12th 3 0 2 1 6 8 Squad
West Germany Munich 1972 16th 3 0 0 3 1 11 Squad
Canada Montreal 1976 Withdrew after qualifying
Soviet Union Moscow 1980
United States Los Angeles 1984 Did not qualify
South Korea Seoul 1988
Since 1992 See Ghana national under-23 football team
Total Quarter-finals 3/8 10 1 3 6 14 31 –

Honours

Summary

Senior Competition 1 2 3 Total
CAF African Cup of Nations 4 5 1 10
CAF African Nations Championship 0 2 0 2
Total 4 7 1 12

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Ghana para niños

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Ghana national football team Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.