Acting National Sports Authority (NSA) Director-General Prof. Emmanuel Osei Sarpong says the Accra Sports Stadium should eventually be demolished and rebuilt, but insists the venue cannot be closed immediately because Ghana has no suitable certified alternative.
Osei Sarpong said shutting the stadium now would leave the country’s national teams without an approved home ground. He told Joy Sports that the NSA’s immediate renovation priorities are Essipong and Accra, with work expected to be completed by 2027.
“I would say yes because of the long term, but no because in the short term you can’t do it. For us, to demolish the Accra Sports Stadium means there are other options where we are supposed to play our matches,” he said.
Members of Parliament on the Youth and Sports Committee have labelled the stadium a “death trap” and called for it to be pulled down. The NSA identified engineering problems at the venue in October, but said demolition was not currently possible.
Osei Sarpong warned that closing the stadium before other grounds had received certification could force Ghana to play home fixtures abroad. That would create additional costs for the government and football authorities.
“If we are going to demolish it, were we going to play our home games outside the country? That was going to come with some financial burdens more than what we will require to play our matches at home,” he added.
Renovation and certification challenges
The Accra Sports Stadium has undergone several renovation programmes, but still does not fully meet FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF) standards.
Its floodlights require repairs estimated at between GH¢1.5 million and GH¢2 million following damage caused by an April 29 rainstorm. The NSA has also raised concerns about inadequate water storage and ageing pipes that are continuing to deteriorate.
Despite those issues, Osei Sarpong said the stadium had hosted Ghana’s senior and youth national teams, both male and female. He added that it had previously been the only venue in the country cleared to stage all of those matches.
“For me, I’ll support the demolition and reconstruction of the Accra Sports Stadium in the long term, but not in the short term,” he stressed.
The shortage of approved venues has already affected the Black Stars’ 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying campaign. Ghana’s Football Association (GFA) pushed for the match against Somalia this month to be moved from Accra to Essipong.
GFA President Kurt Okraku told Parliament’s Select Committee on Sports on Wednesday, November 4, that Essipong in Sekondi would host the November 12 qualifier after CAF granted temporary approval for the fixture.
Under the renovation timetable outlined by Osei Sarpong earlier this week, the NSA will first complete work at Essipong and Accra before moving on to Baba Yara, Aliu Mahama and Cape Coast stadiums.
