The Minister of Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, has called on Ghana’s technical team to assemble the strongest squad possible ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Ghana is preparing for its fifth appearance at football’s flagship tournament, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Speaking in an interview, Mr Adams stressed that selections must be based on merit, not sentiment.
“Good and great players should not be left out anywhere they find themselves, whether they are local or foreign,” Mr Adams said as reported by Citi Sports.
“We are not going for this World Cup just to participate and come home. That’s why we must assemble our best.”
The Buem Constituency MP also cautioned against picking players solely because they play in the domestic league, insisting that talent and performance should remain the primary criteria.
Adams highlighted the importance of retaining top local talent rather than allowing them to immediately move abroad.
“If all we do is allow our best local players to leave at the first opportunity, then we cannot build a strong local base, and we must be intentional about keeping good and skilful players here too,” he said.
While acknowledging that football demands significant resources, the minister affirmed that the government will support all sports.
“We will support all sports, not only football. But football is really expensive and brings a lot of pressure on every minister, so we will do our best to improve the local league so we can produce players who will excel,” Mr Adams added.
The Black Stars are set to discover their group-stage opponents on December 5.
