The Ghana Football Association (GFA) held its 32nd Ordinary Congress at the Ghanaman Soccer Centre of Excellence in Prampram on Thursday, August 20, 2026, bringing together club delegates, technical officials and other football stakeholders to review the season just ended and set the direction for the 2026/27 campaign.
Addressing Congress, GFA President Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku said the Football Association had organized all of its domestic competitions, both regular season and off-season, without any major disruptions for the seventh consecutive season, crediting clubs, match officials, administrators, security agencies, sponsors and partners for the achievement.
On league finances, Okraku announced that each Ghana Premier League club would receive GH¢1 million ahead of the new campaign, part of a broader push to make the league more commercially attractive and financially sustainable. The prize package for the new season totals GH¢9.5 million, with the eventual league champions taking home GH¢3 million. The 2026/27 Ghana Premier League season is scheduled to run from September 4 to 7.
For the lower tiers, Okraku said the GFA would continue absorbing referees' and match commissioners' fees for the Division One League, with each of the 48 participating clubs also receiving GH¢120,000, as part of a wider financial and logistical support package for the Division One League and Women's Premier League.
On transportation, the President said the GFA's Bus Strategy had already delivered 13 buses to Women's Premier League and Division One League clubs, and announced five more vehicles would go to deserving clubs under the FA's enhanced Merit Awards Programme, in recognition of outstanding performances during the 2024/25 season. A separate five vehicles, funded through the FIFA Forward Programme, have been presented to the Greater Accra and Northern Regional Football Associations and to key GFA operational departments.
On talent development, Okraku announced the formal roll-out of the GFA Diaspora Strategy, aimed at strengthening ties with Ghanaian players developing their careers abroad and broadening the pool of players available to the country's national teams. He said the strategy builds on the success of the GFA's first Talent Identification Programme in the United Kingdom, and will complement domestic youth development efforts including the Power to the Youth policy, Elite Football Academies and grassroots competitions.
On youth football specifically, Okraku said the 2026 Colts Football Season will be launched in Accra on September 8, with the GFA continuing to provide free player registration and digital licenses for up to 90 players per Colts club. He also announced the introduction of the KIVO/JLAB U-17 Inter-Clubs Champions League for the new season, and said the GFA would repeat its US$100,000 investment in footballs for second-tier, third-tier and Women's Division One League clubs.
Speaking at the same Congress, the Minister for Sports, addressing concerns about reliance on foreign-based players, told the GFA that foreign-based talent was not an excuse for a weak domestic football ecosystem, underscoring the need for continued investment in the local game.
