GFA launches 2026/27 Colts football season

The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has officially launched the 2026/27 Colts football season, reaffirming its commitment to strengthening grassroots football and creating a sustainable pathway for young talents across the country.

The new season marks the sixth consecutive year of Colts football since the system was resuscitated and restructured by the GFA in 2020.

Addressing the gathering, GFA President Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku described the occasion as a celebration of children, clubs, volunteers and the wider colts football ecosystem, while reflecting on the progress made since the revival of the Colts system.

President Simeon-Okraku said the decision to revive Colts football six years ago was not merely about restarting a competition, but about rebuilding a comprehensive development pathway for young Ghanaian footballers.

He said the ultimate objective was to establish a clear route through which talented youngsters could progress from community football to the regional level, elite development, professional football and the national teams.

“We knew that we were not simply restarting a competition. We were rebuilding a pathway. A pathway from the community to the regional level. From the regional level to elite development. And ultimately, from grassroots football to our national teams and the professional game.”

The scale of the revival is reflected in the number of active clubs participating across the country. According to the President, 859 Colts clubs were currently active across Ghana’s 10 football regions.

The Ashanti Region leads the national table with 245 clubs, followed by Greater Accra with 216. Brong Ahafo and Northern each have 98 clubs, while Central has 90 and Western 50. Eastern has 26 clubs, Upper East 15, Upper West 11, and Volta 10.

The figures, President Simeon-Okraku said, demonstrated how deeply rooted Colts football has become in communities across Ghana.

A major component of the GFA’s grassroots development strategy has been the training and professional development of Colts coaches.

Over the past two seasons, the Football Association has invested GH₵ 1.8 million to train 600 Colts coaches through the GFA-funded CAF Licence D Coaching Programme. The three-year initiative targets 900 coaches, with the final phase scheduled for this year.

The GFA has also invested US$100,000 annually over the past three years in the purchase of footballs for Colts clubs.

It has also committed GH₵ 1.5 million towards educational support and allowances for young referees, including an annual investment of GH₵300,000.

A further GH₵ 270,000 annually is being invested in uniforms and logistics for the programme.

The initiative, he explained was expected to provide Ghana with a sustainable pipeline of refereeing talent while giving young people an opportunity to develop both on and off the field.

The 2026/27 season will also introduce a new competition aimed at giving young players another platform to compete and develop.

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