Ghana at the FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, sometimes called the Football World Cup or the Soccer World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the first tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, due to World War II.
The tournament consists of two parts, the qualification phase and the final phase (officially called the World Cup Finals). The qualification phase, which currently take place over the three years preceding the Finals, is used to determine which teams qualify for the Finals. The current format of the Finals involves 32 teams competing for the title, at venues within the host nation (or nations) over a period of about a month. The World Cup Finals is the most widely viewed sporting event in the world, with an estimated 715.1 million people watching the 2006 tournament final. [1][2]
This article is about the recent FIFA World Cup history of one of the leading nations in African football, Ghana.
FIFA World Cup record
Ghana have qualified for three FIFA World Cup tournaments; 2006, 2010, and 2014.
In 2006 they were the only African side to advance to the Second Round of 2006 FIFA World Cup and were the sixth nation in a row from Africa to progress beyond the group stages of the World Cup.[3] Ghana had the youngest team in the FIFA World Cup 2006 with an average age of 23 years and 352 days,[3] and were praised for their improving performance.[4][5] FIFA ranked Ghana 13th out of the 32 countries who competed in the tournament.[6]
In the 2010 World Cup, Ghana progressed beyond the group stages, and reached the quarter-finals where they were eliminated by Uruguay. Ghana was defeated by Uruguay on penalties after Luis Suárez controversially handballed on the goal line deep into extra time, denying Ghana an almost certain winning goal.[7] Had Ghana won their quarter final, they would have become the first African nation to progress to the semi finals of the world cup. Of the 32 countries that participated in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, FIFA ranked Ghana 7th.[8]
In the 2014 World Cup, Ghana was eliminated during the group stages.
| FIFA World Cup record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1930 to 1958 | Did not enter | ||||||||
 1962 |
Did not qualify | ||||||||
 1966 |
Withdrew | ||||||||
| 1970 to 1978 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
 1982 |
Withdrew | ||||||||
| 1986 to 2002 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
 2006 |
Round of 16 | 13th | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | |
 2010 |
Quarter-Final | 7th | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | |
 2014 |
Round 1 | 25th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | |
 2018 |
To Be Determined | ||||||||
 2022 | |||||||||
| Total | 3/13 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 16 | ||
2006 FIFA World Cup
Head coach: 
Ratomir Dujković
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Sammy Adjei | 1 September 1980 (aged 25) | 31 |  F.C. Ashdod
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| 2 | MF | Hans Sarpei | 28 June 1976 (aged 29) | 7 | Wolfsburg
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| 3 | FW | Asamoah Gyan | 22 November 1985 (aged 20) | 13 |  Udinese[9]
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| 4 | DF | Samuel Kuffour | 3 September 1976 (aged 29) | 58 | Roma
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| 5 | DF | John Mensah | 29 November 1982 (aged 23) | 33 |  Rennes
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| 6 | DF | Emmanuel Pappoe | 3 March 1981 (aged 25) | 27 | Hapoel Kfar Saba
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| 7 | DF | Illiasu Shilla | 26 October 1982 (aged 23) | 2 |  Asante Kotoko
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| 8 | MF | Michael Essien | 3 December 1982 (aged 23) | 17 | Chelsea
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| 9 | MF | Derek Boateng | 2 May 1983 (aged 23) | 11 |  AIK
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| 10 | MF | Stephen Appiah (c) | 24 December 1980 (aged 25) | 42 |  Fenerbahçe
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| 11 | MF | Sulley Muntari | 27 August 1984 (aged 21) | 16 | Udinese
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| 12 | FW | Alex Tachie-Mensah | 15 February 1977 (aged 29) | 5 |  St. Gallen
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| 13 | DF | Habib Mohamed | 10 December 1983 (aged 22) | 1 | King Faisal Babes
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| 14 | FW | Matthew Amoah | 24 October 1980 (aged 25) | 16 | Borussia Dortmund
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| 15 | MF | John Paintsil | 15 June 1981 (aged 24) | 21 | Hapoel Tel Aviv
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| 16 | GK | George Owu | 17 June 1982 (aged 23) | 6 | Ashanti Gold
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| 17 | DF | Daniel Quaye | 25 December 1980 (aged 25) | 7 | Hearts of Oak
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| 18 | DF | Eric Addo | 12 November 1978 (aged 27) | 6 |  PSV Eindhoven
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| 19 | FW | Razak Pimpong | 30 December 1982 (aged 23) | 4 |  Copenhagen
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| 20 | FW | Otto Addo | 9 June 1975 (aged 31) | 13 | Mainz 05
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| 21 | DF | Issah Ahmed | 24 May 1982 (aged 24) | 10 | Randers
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| 22 | GK | Richard Kingson | 13 June 1978 (aged 27) | 33 | Ankaraspor
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| 23 | MF | Haminu Dramani | 1 April 1986 (aged 20) | 7 | Red Star Belgrade[10] |
Italy vs Ghana
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Wikinews has related news: Italy shut out Ghana for 2-0 win in Group E |
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Czech Republic vs Ghana
Asamoah Gyan opened the scoring with a low left footed shot to the net from the edge of the penalty area. Gyan then missed a penalty in the second half when he hit his shot against the post in the 66th minute. Sulley Muntari got the second goal for Ghana in the 82nd minute, finishing a move with a left footed shot to the roof of the net from inside the penalty area.
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Wikinews has related news: Ghana surge past Czech Republic in Group E |
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Ghana vs United States
Ghana opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Haminu Draman curled a low right footed shot past the goalkeeper from the left of the penalty area. The winning goal for Ghana was a penalty at the end of the first half which Stephen Appiah shot high right footed to the goalkeepers right.
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 United States
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Wikinews has related news: Ghana beat United States of America 2-1 in Group E |
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Brazil vs Ghana Second Round Match
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Ghana
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Wikinews has related news: Brazil knock-out Ghana 3-0 to grab quarter-final place |
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Man of the Match:
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2010 FIFA World Cup
Coach: Milovan Rajevac
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Daniel Adjei | 10 November 1989 (aged 20) | 2 | Liberty Professionals
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| 2 | DF | Hans Sarpei | 28 June 1976 (aged 33) | 23 | Bayer Leverkusen
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| 3 | FW | Asamoah Gyan | 22 November 1985 (aged 24) | 32 | Rennes
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| 4 | DF | John Paintsil | 15 June 1981 (aged 28) | 65 | Fulham
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| 5 | DF | John Mensah (c) | 29 November 1982 (aged 27) | 58 | Sunderland
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| 6 | MF | Anthony Annan | 21 July 1986 (aged 23) | 38 |  Rosenborg
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| 7 | DF | Samuel Inkoom | 22 August 1989 (aged 20) | 15 | Basel
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| 8 | DF | Jonathan Mensah | 13 July 1990 (aged 19) | 3 | Granada
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| 9 | MF | Derek Boateng | 2 April 1983 (aged 27) | 19 | Getafe
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| 10 | MF | Stephen Appiah | 24 December 1980 (aged 29) | 56 | Bologna
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| 11 | MF | Sulley Muntari | 27 August 1984 (aged 25) | 52 | Internazionale
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| 12 | FW | Prince Tagoe | 9 November 1986 (aged 23) | 17 | 1899 Hoffenheim
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| 13 | MF | André Ayew | 17 December 1989 (aged 20) | 15 | Arles-Avignon
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| 14 | FW | Matthew Amoah | 24 October 1980 (aged 29) | 31 | NAC
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| 15 | DF | Isaac Vorsah | 21 June 1988 (aged 21) | 6 | 1899 Hoffenheim
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| 16 | GK | Stephen Ahorlu | 10 May 1989 (aged 21) | 0 | Heart of Lions
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| 17 | DF | Abdul Rahim Ayew | 16 April 1988 (aged 22) | 6 |  Zamalek
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| 18 | FW | Dominic Adiyiah | 29 November 1989 (aged 20) | 4 | Milan
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| 19 | DF | Lee Addy | 26 September 1985 (aged 24) | 3 | Bechem Chelsea
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| 20 | MF | Quincy Owusu-Abeyie | 15 April 1986 (aged 24) | 12 | Al-Sadd
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| 21 | MF | Kwadwo Asamoah | 9 September 1988 (aged 22) | 29 | Udinese
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| 22 | GK | Richard Kingson | 13 June 1978 (aged 31) | 58 | Wigan Athletic
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| 23 | MF | Kevin-Prince Boateng | 6 March 1987 (aged 23) | 0 | Portsmouth |
Serbia vs Ghana
Asamoah Gyan scored only goal of the game came in the 85th minute from the penalty spot, shooting to the goalkeepers right after a handball offence by Zdravko Kuzmanovic.
     Serbia[12]
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     Ghana[12]
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Ghana vs Australia
Asamoah Gyan scored the equalizer for Ghana in the 25th minute from the penalty spot, shooting low to the goalkeepers left after a handball by Harry Kewell on the goal-line for which he was shown a straight red card.
Ghana[13]
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     Australia[13]
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Ghana vs Germany
Ghana[14]
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     Germany[14]
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United States vs Ghana Second Round Match
United States vs Ghana was played on 26 June 2010 at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg. The match was watched by 19 million Americans, making it the most watched association football match in American television history.[15] The match was won by Ghana in extra time, after Asamoah Gyan broke a 1–1 deadlock. Kevin-Prince Boateng scored the opening goal of the match for Ghana in the 5th minute. The goal followed an error by Ricardo Clark, who lost the ball to Ghana in midfield. Boateng took the ball to the edge of the penalty area, beating US goalkeeper Tim Howard with a low left foot shot. Landon Donovan equalised with a penalty kick in the 62nd minute, awarded after Jonathan Mensah fouled Clint Dempsey. The US had chances to win the game thereafter, but they were unable to get past Ghana's goalkeeper Richard Kingson. The match thus went to extra time. In the third minute, Gyan latched onto a high long ball, chesting it down and holding off two defenders before scoring the winner.[16] After the match, Ghana's coach Milovan Rajevac hailed his side's achievement in becoming one of the "best eight teams in the world", but regretted the number of players that would miss the quarter-final against Uruguay because of injury or suspension.[17] The president of the Soccer Federation, Sunil Gulati, lamented the team's failure to make the quarter-finals and thereby further raise the profile of the sport in the US.[18]
     United States[19]
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     Ghana[19]
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Uruguay vs Ghana Quarter-Final Match
Uruguay and Ghana met on 2 July 2010 at Soccer City, Johannesburg for a place in the semi-final against the Netherlands. It was the first time that the teams had ever played each other in a senior competitive football match. After a dramatic 120 minutes of play (including extra time) that finished 1–1, Uruguay won in a penalty shoot-out 4–2.[20] Uruguay dominated the early periods of the match, but suffered an injury to captain Diego Lugano in the first half. Just before half-time, Ghana took the lead when Sulley Muntari was allowed time on the ball by Uruguay, and took advantage by scoring with a shot from 40 yards. After half-time, Diego Forlán pulled Uruguay level with a free kick from the left side of the field that went over the head of Ghana's goalkeeper Richard Kingson. While both teams had chances to win, the match proceeded to extra time as the scores remained level. Late in extra time, Ghana sent a free kick into the box; Luis Suárez blocked Stephen Appiah's shot on the goal line.[21] On the rebound, Dominic Adiyiah's header was heading into the goal, but Suárez blatantly blocked the shot with his hands[22] to save what would have been the extra-time winner[23] and he was red carded. Asamoah Gyan missed the ensuing penalty kick off the crossbar[21] and Suárez celebrated the miss.[24][25][26] In the shootout, Gyan converted his penalty,[23] as did everybody else until the 4th round of penalty kicks when Adiyiah's penalty was saved by Uruguayan goalkeeper Fernando Muslera. Uruguay's Maxi Pereira then hit his penalty kick over the bar. Muslera saved Captain John Mensah's, and Ghana's fifth, penalty.[20] Sebastián Abreu converted Uruguay's fifth spot kick by lightly chipping it Panenka-style to win the match.[27] After the game, Suárez said, "I made the save of the tournament,"[23] and, referring to the infamous handball goal scored by Diego Maradona in the 1986 World Cup, claimed that "The 'Hand of God' now belongs to me." Suárez claimed he had no alternative and was acting out of instinct.[28] Forlán agreed that Suárez saved the game, "Suárez this time, instead of scoring goals, he saved one, I think he saved the game.[23] Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac said the play was an "injustice"[25] and Suárez was labeled a "villain"[28][29] and a "cheat".[22][30] But Uruguay coach, Óscar Tabárez, said these labels were too harsh, "Well, there was a handball in the penalty area, there was a red card and Suárez was thrown out. Saying that Ghana were cheated out of the game is too harsh. We have to go by the rules. It might have been a mistake by my player but I do not like that word ‘cheating’."[31] Ghana was the last African team left in the tournament and if they had won, they would have been the first team from Africa to ever make the semifinals.[32] Thus, Suárez was said to have "enraged an entire continent [Africa]."[24] But others viewed him as a hero[22][24][33] who sacrificed himself in the semifinal for the unlikely chance that his team could win.[30][34] A distraught Gyan conceded, "I would say Suárez is a hero now in his own country, because the ball was going in and he held it with his hand. He is a hero now."[32]
2 July 2010 20:30 |
Uruguay  |
1–1 (a.e.t.) | Ghana |
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Forlán  55' |
Report | Muntari 45+2' |
| Penalties | ||
Forlán  Victorino Scotti M. Pereira  Abreu |
4–2 | Gyan Appiah Mensah Adiyiah |
     Uruguay[35]
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Ghana[35]
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2014 FIFA World Cup
Head coach: James Kwesi Appiah
Ghana vs United States
The United States beat Ghana, 2-1.
Germany vs Ghana
Germany and Ghana tied, 2-2.
Portugal vs Ghana
Portugal beat Ghana, 2-1.
References
- ↑ "FIFA World Cup Record". FIFA.com. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
- ↑ "1990 FIFA World Cup Schedule". Planet World Cup. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
- 1 2 "Ghana 2–1 USA". BBC. 22 June 2006. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ↑ "Rehhagel: Africa is catching up". fifa.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
- ↑ "Black Stars Ascend To Glory". fifa.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
- ↑ Black Stars 13th ranked – 2006 FIFA World Cup
- ↑ Fletcher, Paul. "Uruguay 1–1 Ghana (4–2 pens)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ↑ "Ghana records best World Cup ranking". ghanafa.org. Ghana Football Association (GFA). 13 July 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
- ↑ Asamoah has spent the run up to the tournament on loan to Modena.
- ↑ Dramani joined Gençlerbirliği after the tournament.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Referee designations for matches 1-16" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 5 June 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 July 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
- 1 2 3 4 "Tactical Line-up – Group D – Serbia-Ghana" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 13 June 2010. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
- 1 2 "Tactical Line-up – Group D – Ghana-Australia" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 19 June 2010. Retrieved 19 June 2010.
- 1 2 "Tactical Line-up – Group D – Ghana-Germany" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 23 June 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
- ↑ "U.S. V Ghana Tie Most-Watched Soccer Game in U.S. History". ABC News. American Broadcasting Company. 28 June 2010. Archived from the original on 4 July 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ Fletcher, Paul (26 June 2010). "USA 1–2 Ghana (aet)". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 1 July 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ↑ Condie, Stuart (27 June 2010). "Gyan scores in extra time to give Ghana 2–1 win over US and spot in quarters". The Canadian Press. Archived from the original on 29 June 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ↑ Schwarz, Orrin (30 June 2010). "USA's setback vs. Ghana bigger than just one game". Daily Heraldaccessdate=30 June 2010. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- 1 2 "Tactical Line-up – Last 16 – United States-Ghana" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 26 June 2010. Retrieved 26 June 2010.
- 1 2 Lynch, Michael (4 July 2010). "Uruguay ends the dream for gutted Ghana". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 9 July 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
- 1 2 "Match 58 – Quarter-finals – Ghana pay the penalty". FIFA.com. 2 July 2010. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- 1 2 3 "The Luis Suarez story part two – new Liverpool FC star always one to hit the headlines". Liverpool Echo. 10 February 2011. p. 3. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- 1 2 3 4 "World Cup 2010: I have hand of God – Uruguay's Suarez". BBC Sport. 3 July 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- 1 2 3 Matt Lawton (24 March 2011). "Luis Suarez – I want to be known for great goals not biting or that handball". Daily Mail. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
- 1 2 Jeffrey Marcus (2 July 2010). "Uruguay Trades Penalty for Chance at Victory". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- ↑ Angus MacSwan (3 July 2010). "I had no choice but to handle says Uruguay's Suarez". Reuters. Archived from the original on 5 July 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
- ↑ Fletcher, Paul (2 July 2010). "Uruguay 1–1 Ghana (4–2 pens)". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 2 July 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
- 1 2 Jamie Doward (4 July 2010). "Luis Suarez is new World Cup villain after 'hand of God' claim". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- ↑ "Luis Suárez Statistics". ESPN Soccernet. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- 1 2 Jim White (4 July 2010). "World Cup 2010: why can't football tackle cheats?". Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 28 August 2011.
- ↑ Paul Kelso (3 Jul 2010). "World Cup 2010: Uruguay owe semi-final spot to 'sporting injustice', says Ghana coach". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
- 1 2 Ian Chadband (3 Jul 2010). "World Cup 2010: Uruguay's Luis Suárez revels in second coming of Hand of God". Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
- ↑ "A country full of gratitude defies freezing weather to honour Uruguay's soccer team". MercoPress. 14 July 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- ↑ Ben Lyttleton (4 July 2010). "In Suarez's absence Uruguay will lean even more heavily on Forlan". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
- 1 2 "Tactical Line-up – Quarterfinal – Uruguay-Ghana" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 2 July 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2010.