The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has made it crystal clear: Not a single cedi from the government is footing the bill for the Black Stars’ upcoming friendlies against Japan and South Korea.
Communications Director Henry Asante Twum laid it out on Asempa FM’s Ultimate Sports Show: The matches—part of Ghana’s tune-up for the 2026 World Cup—are fully bankrolled by the host nations. “The games will be funded by the two teams that invited the Black Stars; we didn’t take any money from the ministry,” he said.
GFA boss Kurt Okraku did loop in the Ministry of Sports and Recreation for a heads-up, but Twum stressed the green light came without any funding attached. “They gave us their blessing to go ahead with the games, but with no funding,” he added.
No winning bonuses either—just the standard per diem hammered out between the GFA and players.
The squad is already grinding in Asia. Nineteen players hit the pitch for their first session on Wednesday, with the full roster now in camp. Ghana faces Japan in the Kirin Cup on Friday (10:00 a.m. GMT), then jets to Seoul to tangle with South Korea four days later.
With the World Cup looming next summer, these matches are all about sharpening the edge—on someone else’s dime.
