Kofi Adams defends Otto Addo sacking, says Ghana could not go to World Cup 'relying only on God'

The Minister of Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, has defended the decision to sack Otto Addo before the start of the 2026 World Cup. 

The 50-year-old was shown the exit after an unconvincing run of results ahead of the team's preparations to the Mundial in North America, despite guiding the team to secure qualification.

With two months to the start of the tournament, Carlos Queiroz was appointed on a short-term deal.

Speaking in an interview, the sector minister rejected suggestions that Ghana should have retained Otto Addo despite the poor run of results before the World Cup.

Quizzed if Ghana should simply have kept Otto Addo, the Minister responded: “No.”

“If you look at the losses that we were suffering in all your friendlies post the qualifications. If you just couldn’t trust only in God, then it means we’re going to the World Cup trusting only in God. No, I don’t think so at all.”

He argued that the performances under new coach Carlos Queiroz suggested the decision had merit, even though the coach had limited time to prepare the team before the tournament.

“If you watch the strategy of the new coach, Carlos, and you look at our friendlies that we came against Wales, and our performance against Panama, and our performance against England, and even against Croatia, you could see clearly that given much more time, a lot more could have been.”

The Minister said the improvements were particularly evident in Ghana’s defensive organisation.

“It was simply defensive.”

When asked about Ghana’s approach, which amounted to “packing the bus,” the Minister defended the team's tactical style.

“Well, it was also part of the game, and we were stringing passes.”

Under Carlos Queiroz, Ghana began their campaign with a narrow 1-0 victory over Panama before battling to a goalless draw against England. A 2-1 defeat to Croatia in their final Group C fixture saw the Black Stars finish third in the standings, which was enough to secure a place in the Round of 32.

However, Ghana's World Cup journey came to an end after a 1-0 defeat to Colombia in the knockout stage.

The Black Stars will now shift their focus to the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, where they have been drawn in Group C alongside Côte d'Ivoire, Somalia and The Gambia. The qualification campaign is scheduled to begin in September.

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