Ekow Amoasi writes: GHC1m is welcome, but Ghana Premier League's biggest problem remains unsolved ahead of new campaign

"For the upcoming season, each Ghana Premier League club will receive GHC1 million again, and the winner of the Ghana Premier League will take home GHC3 million," Ghana Football Association (GFA) president Kurt Okraku announced during the 32nd Ordinary Congress at the Ghanaman Soccer Centre of Excellence in Prampram.

"A total of GHC9.5 million will be paid to clubs," he added.

The declaration was one of the headline moments during the 32nd Ordinary Congress at the Ghanaman Soccer of Excellence at Prampram as the GFA outlined its financial support package ahead of the 2026/27 Ghana Premier League season.

The announcement follows a similar intervention before the start of the 2025/26 campaign when the government, through a strategic partnership involving the GFA and Adesa Productions Limited (APL), provided GHC1 million to each Premier League club. The initiative was announced by Chief of Staff Julius Debrah and was widely welcomed by clubs struggling with the rising cost of participation in the domestic game.

Let me be clear: there is nothing wrong with government support for football. However, I have always maintained that the Ghana Premier League must eventually become self-sustaining and capable of generating enough revenue to support its stakeholders.

More importantly, it is difficult to justify continuous government investment in a football product that offers little or no measurable return. That is why many observers have described the intervention as more of a corporate social responsibility exercise than a commercial investment.

While the financial support provides welcome relief for clubs, it also highlights a much bigger issue — the continued failure of the Ghana Football Association to secure a headline sponsor for its flagship competition.

• Seven years without a headline sponsor

Kurt Okraku is now in his second term as GFA president and has spent nearly seven years at the helm of Ghana football. Yet one of the most significant shortcomings of his administration remains the inability to attract a major sponsor for the Ghana Premier League.

This is particularly concerning because corporate entities continue to invest heavily in Ghana football, especially in the various national teams, including the Black Stars.

Historically, the league has not struggled to attract sponsors. Under previous administrations, companies such as Kinapharma, Ghana Telecom, OneTouch, Globacom, First Capital Plus Bank and Zylofon Cash all served as headline sponsors at different periods.

The most lucrative of those agreements came from Globacom, which committed approximately $15 million over five years — about $3 million annually — before the partnership was terminated.

More recently, betting company betPawa entered into a three-year sponsorship agreement reportedly worth $6 million in 2022. However, the arrangement ended prematurely, with the company eventually opting to focus on locker-room bonus payments to players.

The abrupt collapse of that partnership raised several questions, many of which remain unanswered.

For any company to commit millions of dollars to a football product, there must have been confidence in its potential. Equally, when such a company chooses to walk away before the expiration of its agreement, it inevitably raises concerns about the attractiveness and long-term viability of the product.

• Persistent challenges continue to hurt the product

The Ghana Premier League continues to face numerous challenges.

Concerns over declining fan interest, inadequate marketing, allegations of match manipulation, poor officiating, substandard playing surfaces, governance issues and a perceived decline in playing quality have all been raised repeatedly by supporters, journalists and industry stakeholders.

What has frustrated many observers is the perception that football authorities have often appeared more willing to defend the status quo than to confront these issues head-on.

These concerns directly affect the commercial appeal of the league and make it more difficult to attract corporate investment.

About a month ago, I watched Godfred Akoto Boafo, a senior sports journalist and now a football club owner, talk to Kafui Dey and openly declared that he does not watch the Ghana Premier League and does not remember the last time he watched a Premier League game.

I was perplexed and disappointed to hear those remarks from a club owner; likewise, Kafui Dey. As a club owner, you expect him to be interested in the topflight, but it did not turn out to be so.

• Financial relief for clubs

Despite the broader concerns, the latest financial package has been warmly received by clubs.

Aduana FC Chief Executive Officer Collins Atta Poku described the support as potentially transformative.

"I would say this is the single most significant and transformative declaration by the FA president in his entire tenure. Now, there has to be consistency," he said.

"Clubs received the money last season, but coming here today, we were not even certain another support package would be announced."

"Putting one million Ghana cedis directly into the accounts of 18 Premier League clubs is very significant. It takes away part of the burden that clubs face."

"For Aduana, about a third of our budget could be covered by that amount. It is significant."

His comments reflect the reality faced by many Ghanaian clubs, most of which operate under severe financial constraints.

• Kofi Adams asks the difficult questions

Before the financial package was announced by Mr Okraku, the Sports and Recreation Minister Kofi Adams raised critical questions that strike at the heart of the league's long-term challenges.

"The new Ghana Premier League season is about to start. Who exactly are we asking Ghanaians to come and watch?" he asked.

"Who is the star? Who is the player every child is talking about? Whose jersey do young supporters want to buy? Who is the personality on the billboard?"

The minister questioned whether clubs and football administrators have done enough to market the league's talent.

"There was a time when Charles Taylor was an attraction. Dong Bortey was an attraction. Ishmael Addo and Stephen Oduro were attractions. Supporters knew the characters of the league. They were heroes. The rivalries were deep and the personalities were identifiable."

"Today, there are more media platforms than we had in the past. There are more opportunities to market players, but who are they and where are they? Why are we hiding them? Or have we not been able to produce them?"

His remarks highlighted a key issue: football is not only about competition; it is also about personalities, narratives and entertainment value.

Adams further stressed the need for a deliberate player-development strategy.

"The world has changed. Talent identification is deliberate. Coaching is deliberate. Sports science is deliberate. Competition exposure is deliberate. Player data is deliberate. Transition is deliberate. Everything is deliberate."

"We cannot compete with deliberate systems through hope."

Those comments represent some of the most important questions currently facing Ghana football.

• Can the Premier League survive on government support alone?

The reality is that government support, while appreciated, cannot become the foundation of the Ghana Premier League's financial model.

Governments change. Priorities change. Economic conditions change.

If a future administration decides not to continue the support package, what becomes of the clubs?

That uncertainty makes the search for a headline sponsor even more urgent.

Over the years, several GFA officials, including Vice President Mark Addo, Executive Council member Nana Oduro Sarfo and Head of Public Relations Strategy Neil Armstrong-Mortagbe, have spoken publicly about ongoing negotiations with potential sponsors.

Yet despite the assurances, no headline sponsorship agreement has materialised.

• A defining challenge for the Okraku administration

As Kurt Okraku considers seeking a third term as GFA president following the recent approval of constitutional amendments, securing a major sponsor for the Ghana Premier League may ultimately become one of the defining measures of his administration's success.

Financial support from government can help clubs survive, but sponsorship, marketing, improved officiating, stronger governance and increased fan engagement are what will help the league thrive.

The Ghana Premier League is currently ranked 100th in the world and 14th in Africa by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS). Those rankings underline the work that remains to be done if the competition is to regain its standing and attract sustained corporate investment.

As the 2026/27 season gets underway, clubs can take encouragement from the financial support available to them, but one question continues to linger over Ghana's top flight:

When will the Ghana Premier League secure a headline sponsor once again?

Until that question is answered, the league's long-term sustainability will remain uncertain, regardless of the welcome financial interventions being provided today.

And as the new season begins, one can only hope that the eventual champions will be determined by events on the pitch and not by the influence of those who wield power behind the scenes.

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