Ghana national football team

Ghana

Nickname(s)	The Black Stars
Association	Ghana Football Association
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Head coach	Milovan Rajevac[1]
Captain	Stephen Appiah
Most caps	Samuel Kuffour (59)[2]
Top scorer	Abédi Pelé (33)
Home stadium	Ohene Djan Sports Stadium
FIFA code	GHA
FIFA ranking	26
Highest FIFA ranking	14 (February, April, May 2008)
Lowest FIFA ranking	89 (June 2004)
Elo ranking	37
Highest Elo ranking	14 (30 June 1966)
Lowest Elo ranking	97 (14 June 2004)
Home colours Away colours
First international
Gold Coast 1-0 Nigeria (Accra, Gold Coast; 21 May 1950)
Biggest win
Kenya 0-13  Ghana (Nairobi, Kenya; 12 December 1965)[3]
Biggest defeat
Brazil 8-2 Ghana  (São José do Rio Preto, Brazil; 27 March 1996)[4][5]
World Cup
Appearances	1 (First in 2006)
Best result	Round 2, 2006
African Nations Cup
Appearances	16 (First in 1963)
Best result	Winners, 1963, 1965, 1978, 1982

The Ghana national football team, popularly known as the Black Stars, is the national association football team of Ghana and is controlled by the Ghana Football Association. Before gaining independence from Great Britain in 1957, the country played as the Gold Coast.

Although the team did not qualify for the senior FIFA World Cup until 2006 they had actually qualified for five straight Olympic Games Football Tournaments when the tournament was still a full senior National Team competition. The team have won the African Cup of Nations four times^[7] (in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982), making Ghana the second most successful team in the contest's history, behind Egypt.

Ghanaian teams has enjoyed considerable success at in FIFA's age-restricted tournaments. The Ghana U17 team, the Black Starlets, have won the FIFA Under-17 World Cup title twice and finished as runner-up twice. The Ghana U20 team, the Black Satellites, have also finished as runner-up at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup twice. The Ghana Olympic Team^[6], the Black Meteors, became the first African Country to win a medal in Football at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

After going through 2005 unbeaten, Ghana won the FIFA World Rankings Most Improved team of the year award and they reached the second round of the 2006 Germany World Cup.

History

The Ghana Amateur Football Association was founded in 1957, soon after the country's independence, and was affiliated to both CAF and FIFA the following year, Englishman George Ainsley being appointed coach of the national team.

In 1960, the Black Stars played Spanish giants Real Madrid, who were at the time Spanish, European and intercontinental champions, and drew 3-3.

Charles Kumi Gyamfi became coach in 1961, and Ghana won successive African Cup of Nations titles, in 1963 and 1965, and achieved their record win, 13-0 away to Kenya, shortly after the second of these. They also reached the final of the tournament in 1968 and 1970, losing 1-0 on each occasion, to DR Congo and Sudan respectively. Their domination of this tournament earned the country the nickname of "the Brazil of Africa" in the 1960s^[8]. The team had no success in FIFA World Cup qualification during this era, and failed to qualify for three successive African Cup of Nations in the 1970s, but qualified for the Olympic Games Football Tournaments, reaching the quarter finals in 1964 and withdrawing on political grounds in 1976 and 1980.

Ghana again won the African Cup of Nations in 1978, retaining the Abdelaziz Abdallah Salem Trophy in perpetuity for having won it three times, and 1982, but a relatively barren period followed, with the full national team dominating the short lived West African Nations Cup from 1982-87, but making little progress in continent-wide competitions until the appointment of Burkhard Ziese as coach in 1991. The 1992 African Cup of Nations, after three failures to reach the final tournament, saw Ghana finish second, beaten on penalties in the final by Côte d'Ivoire.

Disharmony among the squad, which eventually lead to parliamentary and executive intervention to settle issues between two of the team, Abedi Pele and Anthony Yeboah, may have played some part in the failure of the team to build on the successes of the national underage teams. Ghana slipped to 89th place in the FIFA World Rankings, but a new generation of players who went to the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship final became the core of the team at the 2002 African Cup of Nations and the 2004 Olympic Games^[6], and were undefeated for a year in 2005 and reached the finals of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the first time the team had reached the global stage of the tournament. Ghana started with a 2-0 defeat to eventual champions Italy, but wins over the Czech Republic (2-0) and USA (2-1) saw them through to the second round, where they were beaten 3-0 by Brazil.

Team honours

• African Cup of Nations: 4
  

1963, 1965, 1978, 1982

• African Cup of Nations runners-up: 3
  

1968, 1970, 1992

• West African Nations Cup: 5
  

1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987

• All-African Games: 2 Bronze medals
  

1978, 2003

World Cup record

• 1962 - Did Not Qualify
• 1966 - Withdrew from Qualification
• 1970 to 1978 - Did Not Qualify
• 1982 - Withdrew from Qualification
• 1986 to 2002 - Did Not Qualify
• 2006 - Second Round

African Nations Cup record

The Ghana national team at the 2008 African Cup of Nations before the quarter-final match against Nigeria.

Ghana started with a 2-0 defeat to Italy. However, they bounced back with a shock 2-0 victory over the Czech Republic

See Wikinews article:

Ghana surge past Czech Republic in Group E

followed by a 2-1 victory over the USA team

See Wikinews article:

Ghana beat United States of America 2-1 in Group E

to finish second in Group E and continue through to the next round along with eventual Champions Italy. Ghana's unlikely run ended when they met defending World Champions Brazil in the Second Round. Influential player Michael Essien was suspended from the match for his two yellow card's earlier in the Tournament. Despite all of this, Ghana dictated the style and pace of this match, surprising many with several near-goals^[9]. In the end, Brazil won 3-0, although there was some controversy over the first two goals scored by Ronaldo and Adriano as they were both offside^[10]. Slovakian referee Ľuboš Micheľ also sent off Asamoah Gyan in the 82' for falling in the Brazilian penalty area. Zé Roberto scored the third for Brazil off a breakaway soon after^[11].

See Wikinews article:

Brazil knock-out Ghana 3-0 to grab quarter-final place

Ghana were the only African side to advance to Round 2 of 2006 FIFA World Cup (Côte d'Ivoire, Togo, Angola, and Tunisia were all eliminated in group play), and the sixth nation in a row from Africa to progress beyond the group stages of the World Cup. Ghana was the youngest team in the FIFA World Cup 2006 with an average age of 23 yrs and 352 days.

Because of Ghana's performances in the tournament, there has been praise for their continuous efforts to push forward and their fearless attitude. Greece Coach Otto Rehhagel told FIFA.com, the teams you used to regard as a little behind tactically, the Africans for example, have caught up. They're physically even better off than we are, as they have tremendous natural athleticism, and they've come on enormously in the areas which were non-existent before, discipline and tactics for example. Every team which faced Ghana or Cote d'Ivoire knew they'd been in a game. FIFA.com says Black stars ascend to glory. BBC says: Ghana going forward^[12].

Of the 32 countries that participated in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Ghana was ranked the 13th Best Nation by FIFA.

2006 FIFA World Cup Matches
Category	Team A	Result	Team B	Date	Venue	Scorers
Round of 16	Brazil	3-0	Ghana	27 June	Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund	Brazil: Ronaldo 5, Adriano 45+, Ze Roberto 84) [1] First Half; Second Half
Group E	Ghana	2-1	United States	22 June	Frankenstadion, Nuremberg	Ghana Dramani 22, Appiah 47+; USA: Clint Dempsey 43)[2] Pre-Match; 1st Half; 2nd half
Group E	Ghana	2-0	Czech Republic	17 June	RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne	Ghana: Asamoah 2, Muntari 82) [3]
Group E	Italy	2-0	Ghana	12 June	AWD-Arena, Hannover	Italy: Pirlo, 40 Iaquinta 83)[4]

Recent results

Category	Team A	Result	Team B	Date	Venue	Goal Scorers
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier	Ghana	3-0	Lesotho	11 October 2008	Sekondi Stadium, Sekondi, Ghana	Ghana: Muntari 19', Agogo 24', Amoah 67'
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier	Libya	1-0	Ghana	5 September 2008	June 11 Stadium, Tripoli, Libya	Libya: Ahmed Osman 86'[5]
Friendly	Tanzania	1-1	Ghana	20 August 2008	Sheikh Amri Abeid, Arusha, Tanzania	Ghana: Richard Kingson 83', Tanzania: Henry Joseph 34'
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier	Ghana	2-0	Gabon	22 June 2008	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Tagoe 30' [6], Muntari 78', [7]
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier	Gabon	2-0	Ghana	14 June 2008	Stade Omar Bongo, Libreville, Gabon	Gabon: Rogur Meye 45'+1,Stephane N'Guema 58'
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier	Lesotho	2-3	Ghana	8 June 2008	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein, South Africa	Ghana: Kingston 16', Agogo 41', 63'; Lesotho: Sello Muso 90'+2, Lehlohonolo Seema 90'+3
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier	Ghana	3-0	Libya	1 June 2008	Baba Yara Stadium, Kumasi, Ghana	Ghana: Tagoe 16', Kingston 55', Agogo 67' [8]
Friendly	Australia	1-0	Ghana	23 May 2008	Stadium Australia, Sydney, Australia	Australia: Sterjovski 46'[9]
Friendly	Ghana	1-2	Mexico	26 March 2008	Craven Cottage, London, England	Ghana: Essien 55' [10]; Mexico: Salcido 76' [11], Pardo 85' pen. [12]
2008 African Cup of Nations	Ghana	4-2	Côte d'Ivoire	09 February 2008	Baba Yara Stadium, Kumasi, Ghana	Ghana: Muntari 10, Owusu-Abeyie 70, Agogo 80, Dramani 84; Ivory Coast: Sanogo 24, 32 [13]
2008 African Cup of Nations	Ghana	0-1	Cameroon	07 February 2008	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Cameroon: Nkong 71 [14]
2008 African Cup of Nations	Ghana	2-1	Nigeria	03 February 2008	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Essien 47+, Agogo 83; Nigeria: Yakubu 35 (pen.) [15]
2008 African Cup of Nations	Ghana	2-0	Morocco	28 January 2008	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Essien 26, Muntari 89 [16]
2008 African Cup of Nations	Ghana	1-0	Namibia	24 January 2008	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Agogo 41 [17]
2008 African Cup of Nations	Ghana	2-1	Guinea	20 January 2008	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Asamoah 55, Muntari 89; Guinea: Kalabane 65 [18]
Friendly	Ghana	4-2	Benin	21 November 2007	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Agogo 47, Kingston 78, 86, Appiah 84; Benin: Sessegnon 25, Omotoyossi 46 [19]
Friendly	Ghana	2-0	Togo	18 November 2007	Ohene Djan Stadium, Accra, Ghana	Ghana: Baffour 53, Kingston 63 [20]

Current squad

Head coach: Milovan Rajevac Appointed on 12 August, 2008

Most Recent Squad
Date announced	28 August 2008 [21]
Game(s)	Lesotho, 11 October
Venue(s)	Sekondi Stadium, Sekondi, Ghana
Competition	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
Dropped	Ayew, Barusso, Quincy
Debutant(s)	Daniel Yeboah, Quansah
Injured	*Sarpei, Asamoah, Essien
Called Up	Inkoom, Boye
Notes	Mario Balotelli Excused

Goalkeepers

Name	DOB	Club	Caps (goals)	Debut
Richard Kingson	June 13, 1978 (1978-06-13) (age 31)	Wigan Athletic F.C.	61 (1)	v Brazil, 27 March 1996
William Amamoo	April 4, 1982 (1982-04-04) (age 27)	Vasalund-Essinge IF	1 (0)	v Australia, 23 May 2008
George Owu	July 7, 1982 (1982-07-07) (age 27)	Al-Masry	7 (0)	v Somalia, 19 November 2003

Defenders

Name	DOB	Club	Caps (goals)	Debut
Hans Sarpei	June 28, 1976 (1976-06-28) (age 33)	Bayer Leverkusen	23 (0)	v Zimbabwe, 7 November 2000
Eric Addo	November 12, 1978 (1978-11-12) (age 30)	PSV Eindhoven	30 (0)	v Tunisia, 9 February 1998
Harrison Afful	June 24, 1986 (1986-06-24) (age 23)	KV Mechelen	9 (0)	v Ivory Coast, 9 February 2008
Francis Dickoh	December 13, 1982 (1982-12-13) (age 26)	Utrecht	11 (0)	v Saudi Arabia 14 November 2005
John Mensah (vc)	November 29, 1982 (1982-11-29) (age 26)	Olympique Lyonnais	59 (0)	v Algeria 5 December 2001
John Pantsil	June 15, 1981 (1981-06-15) (age 28)	Fulham F.C.	47 (0)	v Algeria, 5 December 2001
Issah Ahmed	May 24, 1982 (1982-05-24) (age 27)	Randers FC	13 (0)	v Burkina Faso 5 June 2005
John Boye	April 23, 1987 (1987-04-23) (age 22)	Stade Rennais	2 (0)	v Gabon 22 June 2008

Midfielders

Name	DOB	Club	Caps (goals)	Debut
Stephen Appiah (c)	December 24, 1980 (1980-12-24) (age 28)	Fenerbahçe	55 (13)	v Benin, 24 December 1996
Michael Essien	December 3, 1982 (1982-12-03) (age 26)	Chelsea	43 (8)	v Egypt 4 January 2002
Laryea Kingston	November 7, 1980 (1980-11-07) (age 28)	Heart of Midlothian	30 (6)	v Congo DR, 27 March 2005
Sulley Ali Muntari	August 27, 1984 (1984-08-27) (age 25)	Internazionale Milano	44 (13)	v Slovenia, 17 May 2002
Anthony Annan	July 21, 1986 (1986-07-21) (age 23)	Rosenborg	18 (0)	v Austria 24 March 2007
Ahmed Barusso	December 26, 1984 (1984-12-26) (age 24)	A.C. Siena on loan from AS Roma	7 (1)	v Rwanda, 6 July 2003
Prince Buaben	April 23, 1988 (1988-04-23) (age 21)	Dundee United	1 (0)	v Australia 23 May 2008
Haminu Dramani	April 1, 1986 (1986-04-01) (age 23)	Stoke City on loan from Lokomotiv Moscow	29 (3)	v Saudi Arabia 14 November 2005
Moussa Narry	April 19, 1986 (1986-04-19) (age 23)	AJ Auxerre	3 (0)	v Togo, 18 November 2007
André Ayew	December 17, 1989 (1989-12-17) (age 19)	FC Lorient on loan from Marseille	10 (0)	v Senegal, 21 August 2007

Strikers

Name	DOB	Club	Caps (goals)	Debut
Peter Ofori-Quaye	March 21, 1980 (1980-03-21) (age 29)	AEL Limassol	32 (17)	v ?
Asamoah Gyan	November 22, 1985 (1985-11-22) (age 23)	Stade Rennais	27 (13)	v Somalia, 19 November 2003
Junior Agogo	August 1, 1979 (1979-08-01) (age 30)	Zamalek	23 (11)	v Japan 4 October 2006
Emmanuel Badu Agyeman	February 12, 1990 (1990-02-12) (age 19)	Berekum Arsenal	2 (0)	v Australia 23 May 2008
Chris Dickson	December 28, 1984 (1984-12-28) (age 24)	Charlton Athletic	1 (0)	v Tanzania, 20 August 2008
Eric Bekoe	December 10, 1986 (1986-12-10) (age 22)	Asante Kotoko	5 (0)	v Mexico, 26 March 2008
Quincy Owusu-Abeyie	April 15, 1986 (1986-04-15) (age 23)	Birmingham City on loan from Spartak Moscow	10 (1)	v Guinea, 20 January 2008
Prince Tagoe	November 9, 1986 (1986-11-09) (age 22)	Al-Ittifaq	9 (2)	v Togo 11 January 2006

Recent callups

The following players have also been called up to the Ghana squad recently:

Name	DOB	Club	Caps (goals)	Debut	Most recent callup
DF Daniel Opare	October 18, 1990 (1990-10-18) (age 19)	Real Madrid	0 (0)	N/A	v Togo, 18 November 2007
FW Derek Asamoah	May 1, 1981 (1981-05-01) (age 28)	OGC Nice	3 (0)	v Korea Republic, 8 October 2006	v Australia, 23 May 2008
GK Patrick Antwi	November 4, 1987 (1987-11-04) (age 21)	Liberty Professionals	1 (0)	v Mexico, 26 March 2008	v Mexico, 26 March 2008
DF Richard Manu	January 20, 1974 (1974-01-20) (age 35)	Asante Kotoko	0 (0)	N/A	v Mexico, 26 March 2008
FW Baffour Gyan	July 2, 1980 (1980-07-02) (age 29)	FC Saturn	33 (5)	v Sudan, 25 February 2001	v Libya, 1 June 2008
DF Kofi Amponsah	April 23, 1978 (1978-04-23) (age 31)	Apollon Kalamarias	0 (0)	N/A	v Libya, 1 June 2008
FW Ransford Osei	December 5, 1990 (1990-12-05) (age 18)	Maccabi Haifa	0 (0)	N/A	v Togo, 18 November 2007
GK Sammy Adjei	September 1, 1980 (1980-09-01) (age 29)	FC Ashdod	34 (0)	v Sudan, 25 February 2001	2008 African Nations Cup
GK Abdul Fatawu Dauda	April 6, 1985 (1985-04-06) (age 24)	Ashanti Gold SC	1 (0)	2008 African Cup of Nations, 20 January 2008	2008 African Nations Cup
DF Nana Akwasi Asare	July 11, 1986 (1986-07-11) (age 23)	KV Mechelen	2 (0)	v Morocco, 8 September 2007	2008 African Nations Cup
MF Bennard Yao Kumordzi	March 21, 1985 (1985-03-21) (age 24)	Panionios	4 (1)	v Brazil, 27 March 2007	v Tanzania, 20 August 2008
FW Kwadwo Asamoah	September 9, 1988 (1988-09-09) (age 21)	Torino Calcio	0 (0)	N/A	2008 African Nations Cup
FW Nafiu Idrissu	June 12, 1986 (1986-06-12) (age 23)	Sharjah FC	0 (0)	N/A	v Togo, 18 November 2007
MF Derek Boateng	May 2, 1983 (1983-05-02) (age 26)	Beitar Jerusalem	18 (3)	v Mali, 25 December 2001	v Tanzania, 20 August 2008

Previous Nations Cup squads

Famous players

Ghana has had great players in their rich history from the early 1950s, through the 1960s ANC Championship sides to 1970 when CAF instituted a new African Footballer of the Year Best player Awards to the 1990s when Abédi Pelé and Tony Yeboah received FIFA World Player of the Year top ten nominations and the 2000s when Sammy Kuffour and Michael Essien became FIFA World Class Players and received Ballon d'Or nominations. Ghana has never been short of talent. Abédi Pelé is one of the "FIFA 100" greatest living footballers of all-time.

On 13 January 2007, the Confederation of African Football voted Abedi Pele, Michael Essien, Tony Yeboah, Ibrahim Abdul Razak and Samuel Kuffour as members of the CAF Top 30 Best African Players of all-time. In addition, Abedi and Yeboah were voted as members of the Africa Best Player of the Century in 1999 by IFFHS.

• Arthur Wharton - English Football Hall of Fame 2003, first black association professional footballer though he preceded the 'Black Stars' era and played mainly in England.
• Abédi Pelé - FIFA 100, WPOY Nom.1991, 9th 1992, 1991, 1992, 1993 APOY Winner, APOY Nom. 85,86,87,88,89,90, 5th Best African Player of All-Time
• Karim Abdul Razak - 1978 APOY Winner, 6th 1983, 26th Best African Player of All-Time
• Ibrahim Sunday - 1971 APOY Winner
• Samuel Kuffour - Ballon d'Or Nom. 2001, APOY Runner-up 1999,2001, 27th Best African Player of All-Time
• Tony Yeboah - WPOY 9th 1993, Ballon d'Or 23rd 1995, APOY Runner-up 1993, 3rd 1992, 6th 1991, 10th 1996, 24th Best African Player of All-Time
• Michael Essien - FIFA World Player of the Year – 22nd 2005, 22nd 2006, 15th 2007; Ballon d'Or – 24th 2007 27th 2006, 22nd 2005; APOY – 2nd 2007, 3rd 2006, 3rd 2005, 11th Best African Player of All-Time
• Robert Mensah - APOY Runner-up 1971, 9th 1970
• Adolf Armah - APOY Runner-up 1979
• Opoku Nti - APOY Runner-up 1983
• Mohammed Polo - APOY 4th 1977
• Nii Lamptey - APOY 5th 1991, FIFA U-17 Golden Ball, Silver Shoe1991
• Yaw Sam - APOY 6th 1973
• Malik Jabir - APOY 7th 1972
• Albert Asaase - APOY 7th 1982
• Charles Akunnor - APOY 7th 1998
• Osei Kofi - APOY 8th 1970
• Opoku Afriyie - APOY 8th 1982
• Stephen Appiah - APOY 8th 2003
• Daniel Addo - FIFA U-17 Golden Ball 1993
• Ishmael Addo - FIFA U-17 Golden Shoe 1999
• Owusu Afriyie - FIFA U-17 Bronze Shoe 1997

Other notable players

Technical staff

Head Coach	Milovan Rajevac
Assistant Coach	Akwasi Appiah
Fitness Coach	Vacant
Goalkeeping Coach	Edward Ansah
Psychologist	Dr. Yao Mfodwo
Physiotherapist	Charles Botchway
Team Doctor	Dr Percy Annan
2nd Team Doctor	Dr Allan Akaba
Welfare Officer	Opoku Afriyie
Protocol Officer	Alex Asante
Spokesman	Randy Abbey
Kit Manager	Sherif Bobo Musah

Head coaches

Date appointed Manager name 2008 - Present Milovan Rajevac 2006 - 2008 Claude Le Roy 2004 - 2006 Ratomir Dujković 2004 Sam Arday (interim) 2004 Mariano Barreto 2003 Ralf Zumdick 2003 Burkhard Ziese 2002 Emmanuel Akwasi Afranie 2002 Milan Živadinović 2001 - 2002 Fred Osam-Duodu 2001 Cecil Jones Attuquayefio 2000 Fred Osam-Duodu 1999 - 2000 Giuseppe Dossena

Date appointed Manager name 1997 - 1998 Rinus Israël 1996 - 1997 Sam Arday 1996 Ismael Kurtz 1995 Petre Gavrilla 1995 Jørgen E. Larsen 1994 E.J. Aggrey-Fynn 1993 Fred Osam-Duodu 1992 - 1993 Otto Pfister 1990 - 1992 Burkhard Ziese 1988 - 1989 Fred Osam-Duodu 1986 - 1987 Rudi Gutendorf 1984 Herbert Addo

Date appointed Manager name 1984 Emmanuel Akwasi Afranie 1982 - 1983 C. K. Gyamfi^ 1978 - 1981 Fred Osam-Duodu^ 1977 - 1978 O. C. Sampaio 1974 - 1975 Karl Weigang 1968 - 1970 Karl Heinz Marotzke 1967 Carlos Alberto Parreira 1963 - 1965 C. K. Gyamfi^ 1963 Josef Ember 1959 - 1962 Adreas Sjolberg 1958 - 1959 George Ainsley

^Won African Cup of Nations during tenure

Competitive Statistics

FIFA World Cup Record FIFA World Cup Record GP W D L GF GA GD World Cup Finals 4 2 0 2 4 6 -2 World Cup Quals (H) 30 20 8 2 57 17 +40 World Cup Quals (A) 29 7 8 14 31 38 -7 World Cup Total 63 29 16 18 92 61 +31 African Cup of Nations Record Nations Cup Record GP W D L GF GA GD Nations Cup Finals 66 37 13 16 91 56 +35 Nations Cup Quals (H) 31 22 6 3 69 23 +46 Nations Cup Quals (A) 31 11 8 12 42 31 +11 Nations Cup Total 128 70 27 31 202 110 +92 Nations Cup Record by team Ghana versus GP W D L GF GA GD  Côte d'Ivoire 8 5 1 2 17 11 +6  Tunisia 6 5 1 0 10 4 +6  Congo DR 5 3 0 2 8 5 +3  Nigeria 6 2 1 3 6 7 -1  Senegal 3 2 1 0 4 2 +2  Congo 3 3 0 0 7 2 +5  Guinea 4 3 1 0 5 2 +3  Zambia 3 2 0 1 3 2 +1  Algeria 3 1 1 1 3 4 -1  South Africa 3 0 1 2 0 4 -4  Egypt 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1  Morocco 3 1 1 1 2 1 +1  Sudan 2 1 0 1 3 1 +2  Burkina Faso 2 2 0 0 5 1 +4  Cameroon 3 0 2 1 1 2 -1  Libya 2 0 2 0 3 3 0  Togo 2 1 0 1 3 2 +1  Ethiopia 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2  Uganda 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2  Malawi 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1  Mozambique 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2  Namibia 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1  Zimbabwe 1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 Total 66 37 13 16 91 56 +35 West African Nations Cup [SCSA Zone III] Record Year Venue Round Position GP W D L GF GA GD 1982  Benin Final Winner 5 3 2 0 14 8 +6 1983  Côte d'Ivoire Final Winner 4 3 1 0 7 2 +5 1984  Burkina Faso Final Winner 5 2 3 0 9 5 +4 1986  Ghana Final Winner 6 5 1 0 12 2 +10 1987  Liberia Final Winner 5 5 0 0 14 2 +12 Total 5/5 5 Finals 5 Championships 25 18 7 0 56 19 +37 The Tournament was not held in 1985. Trivia Ghana hosted and won the Original African Cup of Nations Trophy (Known as The Abdelaziz Abdallah Salem Trophy) for Keeps in 1978 as they became the first Country to win three Nations Cup titles[13]. In the final of the 1992 African Cup of Nations on 26 January 1992, Ghana was defeated 11-10 by the Côte d'Ivoire in the highest-scoring penalty shoot-out in International football competition at the time- the 24-shot shoot-out, when Ghana played their record 7th African Cup of Nations final game. Ghana captain and influential play maker Abédi Pelé, who won the best player of that tournament was suspended for the final because of yellow card accumulation from the 2-1 semi-final win over Nigeria. Of the 32 countries which participated in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Ghana was ranked the 13th Best Nation by FIFA.[14] Kwesi Owusu, former Black Stars captain, was the first footballer to score a goal at the Munich Olympic Stadium during the 1972 Olympic Games. His photograph still stands erect at one of the Olympic Villages in Olympiapark, Munich, Germany. See also 1963 African Cup of Nations - Host 1978 African Cup of Nations - Host 2000 African Cup of Nations - Co-Host 2008 African Cup of Nations - Host African Footballer of the Year External links [22]-The No.1 Site For Ghana Soccer Ghana Football Association - Official website Ghana Football Forum - Official Fan Forum 2008 African Cup of Nations website- Official Tournament Home Ghana Premier League website Ghana's 2006 FIFA World Cup Profile Ghanaweb Sports Page RSSSF Archive of all Ghana Matches History of Ghana at the African Cup of Nations Latest Ghana Soccer News Ghana CAN 2008 - African Cup of Nations News Ghana soccer Forum - Number one Fan Forum Preceded by 1962 Ethiopia  African Champions 1963 (First title) 1965 (Second title) Succeeded by 1968 Congo DR  Preceded by 1976 Morocco  African Champions 1978 (Third title) Succeeded by 1980 Nigeria  Preceded by 1980 Nigeria  African Champions 1982 (Fourth title) Succeeded by 1984 Cameroon  Preceded by Inaugural Champions West African Champions 1982 (First title) 1983 (Second title) 1984 (Third title) 1986 (Fourth title) 1987 (Fifth title) Succeeded by Defunct Football in Ghana National Association National team Ghana Premier League Soccer Clubs Venues U-17 team U-20 team U-23 team Women's team Ghanaian Managers Teams Players FA Cup National football teams of Africa (CAF) Algeria | Angola | Benin | Botswana | Burkina Faso | Burundi | Cameroon | Cape Verde | Central African Republic | Chad | Comoros | Congo | Congo DR | Côte d'Ivoire | Djibouti | Egypt | Equatorial Guinea | Eritrea | Ethiopia | Gabon | Gambia | Ghana | Guinea | Guinea-Bissau | Kenya | Lesotho | Liberia | Libya | Madagascar | Malawi | Mali | Mauritania | Mauritius | Morocco | Mozambique | Namibia | Niger | Nigeria | Réunion† | Rwanda | São Tomé and Príncipe | Senegal | Seychelles | Sierra Leone | Somalia | South Africa | Sudan | Swaziland | Tanzania | Togo | Tunisia | Uganda | Zambia | Zanzibar† | Zimbabwe †Associate member International football FIFA · World Cup · Confederations Cup · U-20 World Cup · U-17 World Cup Olympics · Asian Games · All-Africa Games · Pan American Games · Island Games · Minor Tournaments World Rankings · Player of the Year · Teams · Competitions · Organizations · Codes Asia AFC - Asian Cup Africa CAF - Africa Cup of Nations North America CONCACAF - Gold Cup South America CONMEBOL - Copa América Oceania OFC - Nations Cup Europe UEFA - European Championship Non-FIFA NF-Board - Viva World Cup 2006 FIFA World Cup finalists Champions: Italy Runners-up: France Third place: Germany  Fourth place: Portugal  Eliminated in quarter-finals: Argentina • Brazil • England • Ukraine Eliminated in round of 16: Australia • Ecuador • Ghana • Mexico • Netherlands • Spain • Sweden • Switzerland Eliminated in group stage: Angola • Costa Rica • Côte d'Ivoire • Croatia • Czech Republic • Iran • Japan • Korea Republic • Paraguay • Poland • Saudi Arabia • Serbia & Montenegro • Togo • Trinidad and Tobago • Tunisia • United States 2008 Africa Cup of Nations finalists Champions: Egypt Runners-up: Cameroon Third place: Ghana  Fourth place: Côte d'Ivoire  Eliminated in quarter-finals: Angola • Guinea • Nigeria • Tunisia Eliminated in group stage: Benin • Mali • Morocco • Namibia • Senegal • South Africa • Sudan • Zambia Ghana squad – 2006 FIFA World Cup 1 Adjei • 2 Sarpei • 3 Gyan • 4 Kuffour • 5 Mensah • 6 Pappoe • 7 Shilla • 8 Essien • 9 Boateng • 10 Appiah • 11 Muntari • 12 Tachie‑Mensah • 13 Mohamed • 14 Amoah • 15 Paintsil • 16 Owu • 17 Quaye • 18 E. Addo • 19 Pimpong • 20 O. Addo • 21 Issah • 22 Kingson • 23 Dramani • Coach: Dujković References ↑ "Rajevac named new Ghana coach", Ghana FA (2008-08-12). Retrieved on 2008-08-12.  ↑ "All-Stars clash kick off in Bari". Meridian Cup. UEFA (1 February 2001). Retrieved on 2007-04-06. ↑ "Kenya International Matches". Kenya International Matches. RSSSF (1 February 2000). Retrieved on 2007-04-10. ↑ "BLACK METEORS HUMILIATED 8-2 BY BRAZIL". Ghanaian News Runner. newsrunner.com (3 April 1996). Retrieved on 2007-02-01. ↑ "1996 INTERCONTINENTAL MATCHES". Author: Neil Morrison. srcf.ucam.org (1 February 2001). Retrieved on 2001-02-01. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Since 1992, squads for Football at the Summer Olympics have been restricted to three players over the age of 23. The achievements of such teams are not usually included in the statistics of the international team. ↑ "African Football: The early years", bbc.co.uk (2004-01-16). Retrieved on 2004-01-16.  ↑ "African Football: ANC winners from 1957 to 2002", panapress.com (2004-01-01). Retrieved on 2004-01-01.  ↑ "Brazil 3-0 Ghana", bbc.co.uk (2006-06-27). Retrieved on 2006-06-27.  ↑ "Ronaldo tops the charts as rocky Brazil roll on", guardian.co.uk (2006-06-27). Retrieved on 2006-06-27.  ↑ "Ghana's brave run broken by Brazilians", independent.co.uk (2006-06-27). Retrieved on 2006-06-27.  ↑ "Ghana going forward", BBC Sports, BBC Sports (27 June 2006). Retrieved on 2007-01-01.  ↑ "African Nations Cup trophy revealed", bbc.co.uk (2001-09-25). Retrieved on 2001-09-25.  ↑ Yahoo News. "Defunct Link". Retrieved on 2008-05-28.