- Ghana fails to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) for the first time in 20 years
- Winfried Schäfer, appointed as technical advisor, describes the failure as a “catastrophe"
- Ghana finished bottom of their AFCON qualification group with just a few draws and three losses
Black Stars Technical Advisor, Winfried Schäfer, has called Ghana’s failure to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) a “catastrophe.”
For the first time in 20 years, the four-time African champions will miss out on the continent’s top tournament, which will be held in Morocco later this year.
Ghana’s qualification campaign was disappointing, with just a few draws and three losses across six matches, leaving them at the bottom of their group. This result sparked widespread disappointment and calls for the dismissal of head coach Otto Addo.
Schäfer, who previously led Cameroon to an AFCON title, was appointed as technical advisor ahead of Ghana’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Chad and Madagascar. In an interview with Germany’s Sächsische Zeitung, as reported by AfricaSoccer.com, the experienced coach was blunt in his assessment.
“The team missed the Africa Cup, which is seen as a catastrophe in Ghana,” Schäfer said.
“There was unrest in the squad, World Cup qualification wasn’t going well, and the president of the federation asked me to come in and bring some structure,” he added.
Despite the setback in AFCON qualification, the Black Stars showed signs of progress with back-to-back victories against Chad and Madagascar in March.
The team will next participate in a four-nation tournament in the UK later this month before resuming their World Cup qualification campaign in September with matches against Chad and Mali.
