GFA President Kurt E.S Okraku closes FIFA Club Professionalisation and Management workshop

The President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku, has urged Premier League Club representatives to apply the knowledge gained from the FIFA Club Professionalisation and Management workshop, which concluded on Wednesday March 5, 2025.The President made the remarks when he closed the two-day workshop, organised for top Ghana Premier League Executives and supported by the world governing body, FIFA, at the Ghanaman Soccer Centre of Excellence (GSCE) in Prampram.President Simeon-Okraku also expressed his gratitude to FIFA for supporting the Football Association's efforts to enhance football development, while urging the club representatives to apply the knowledge gained from the workshop to foster sustainable growth within their teams.'I remember when all of you here offered me the chance to lead in 2019, I paid a visit to Zurich and I met President Gianni (Infantino). One of the foremost topics I picked up with him was ways of empowering Africa by way of knowledge and education-sharing. Because I truly, truly thought, and I still think, that it is a key need area for us in Africa, President Okraku saidSome of us are blessed to have had a chance to go and study football. But we need more people to have the right level of skill sets to be able to deliver football the way it has to be delivered. So bringing this training to our doorstep, in my opinion, is a blessing. And I will not only say thank you again to FIFA, but I will definitely ask for more.Because knowledge exchange should always be timeless. Seeking knowledge should be a key part of our journey in this industry. And I believe that every club right here would want not only to exchange, but also to learn. Therefore, I would always say, FIFA, bring us more. Bring us more of such opportunities so that we can close the gap. Because in the time past, many years ago, we never had so many niche areas in the management of football.

The workshop aimed to improve the overall management and professional standards of the clubs by equipping them with the necessary knowledge and skills required for effective football administration.

The sessions focused on the latest trends in relation to club operations, stadium management, finance, marketing and communications, sporting strategy, governance, leadership and negotiation skills.

The GFA and FIFA hope to strengthen the administrative capabilities of Ghanaian football clubs, ultimately contributing to the long-term success and development of the sport in the country.

This is what we need. Continuous exchange, continuous learning, continuous giving, continuous taking. And gradually, our football industry will be the industry that all of us have been yearning for. Without such spaces, such platforms, we will not get to the promised land. And I'm sure that between yesterday and today, you may have picked one of two new things.When we leave here, that should not be the end of our engagements. Let's reach out to each others. Let's cross-check what we have picked up here and add on. And by doing that, our clubs would improve. On behalf of the Executive Council, I thank you so much for accepting to be here. I pray that the almighty God will keep all of us together and together we would effect the changes in not only our clubs, but also the entire football family. Congratulations. President Okraku applauded in his concluding remarks.

This initiative is part of the ongoing collaboration between the GFA and FIFA to professionalise football in Ghana and ensure that local clubs are equipped to compete at both domestic and international levels.

FIFAs delegation is headed by Solomon Mudege, the Head of FIFA Development Programmes- Africa, Marcos Picallo Aguilar- FIFA Senior Professional Football Manager, and Development, Silmara Sousa - MA Regional Coordinator, FIFA Development Programmes.

FIFA Experience Instructor and Consultant Pedro Manuel Correia Miranda is the lead instructor for the programme.

From 4-5 March 2025, the workshop brought together two representatives from each of Ghana's 18 premier division clubs.

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