ACCRA, Ghana, 8th September: President John Dramani Mahama has tasked the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to revive the Colts League as part of efforts to identify and develop young football talents across the country.
President Mahama said Ghana’s football development system had lost an important component that previously played a major role in identifying young players.
Speaking when Medeama SC, Nations FC and Ampem Darkoa Ladies Football Club paid a courtesy call on him, he said Ghana must return to a structured system for nurturing young footballers.
“One of the things with regard to our football that we have left behind is identifying young talent. We used to have a very good Colts League. I do not know what happened to it,” he said.
President Mahama noted that although the programme had reportedly been renamed “grassroots football,” the Colts League remained a familiar and important part of Ghana’s football development history.
He therefore called on the Football Association to restore the Colts League name and work with stakeholders to provide the necessary support for the competition.
The President further pledged to personally contribute to Colts teams in his constituency or hometown as part of efforts to encourage grassroots football development.
He said a strong youth development system was essential to ensuring a continuous supply of talented players for Ghana’s domestic clubs and national teams.
President Mahama also raised concerns about the premature transfer of young Ghanaian players to foreign leagues.
According to him, promising players are often quickly taken away by scouts, particularly to Europe, thereby weakening the quality and competitiveness of Ghana’s domestic league.
He proposed that Ghana should find ways to retain talented players for longer periods, expose them to the national teams and give them sufficient international experience before they eventually move abroad.
He said such an approach would help strengthen the domestic league while ensuring that Ghanaian players mature properly before making international transfers.
Story by: Emmanuel Romeo Tetteh(#RomeoWrites✍️)/ Presidential Affairs Correspondent | Ghana 🇬🇭