Ghanaians living in Toronto and across North America have received a personal charge from President John Dramani Mahama to pack the stands and create a home atmosphere for the Black Stars when Ghana takes on Panama in their opening 2026 FIFA World Cup match.
The President, in an official statement issued on Tuesday by Minister of State in charge of Government Communications Felix Kwakye Ofosu, said the diaspora had a role to play that went beyond watching from the sidelines, describing them as the team’s 12th Man on foreign soil.
“Let the red, gold, and green illuminate the stands, and let our drums remind our boys that wherever a Ghanaian stands, home is never far away,” the statement said.
President Mahama told the players they stepped onto the pitch carrying something far weightier than a football, saying they bore the hopes, dreams and heritage of a nation whose people, from the streets of Chorkor to the plains of Bole, had their hearts set on what happened in Toronto.
He said the fifth World Cup appearance was proof of the country’s enduring fighting spirit and assured the team that both government and the over 30 million people of Ghana were squarely in their corner.
For supporters unable to travel to Canada, the government said it had secured official television broadcast rights for the tournament, bringing every match into homes across the country, from Axim to Bawku and from Ho to Hamile.
“This is our gift to a nation that lives and breathes the beautiful game,” the statement said.
The broadcast arrangement followed a separate government decision to release GHS 76,466,919.20 toward the Black Stars’ World Cup campaign, a package that covered preparations for the group stage and cleared outstanding qualification bonuses owed to players and technical staff from the qualifying campaign.
The Black Stars are at their fifth World Cup, having made their debut at the 2006 tournament in Germany, where they reached the round of 16.
Their best showing came four years later in South Africa, where they pushed to the quarter-finals before a painful penalty shootout exit against Uruguay.
Appearances in Brazil in 2014 and Qatar in 2022 followed, with the team going out at the group stage on both occasions.
The 2026 tournament, spread across venues in the United States, Canada and Mexico, offers a fresh opportunity, and the President left the team in no doubt about what the nation expected.
“Play for the flag. Play for the children dreaming of greatness in your footsteps. The world is watching, and we are confident that the Black Star will shine brighter than ever before on this global stage,” the statement concluded.
Richard Aniagyei, ISD
