Coach Nora Häuptle: First Foreign coach, 19th coach for Queens

In a bid to get Ghana’s senior female team, the Black Queens to reclaim their place among the elite in Africa and perhaps, also at the world level, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) has broken away from tradition and appointed a foreign coach, Switzerland’s Nora Häuptle as the new coach of the team.

She takes over from Mercy Tagoe Quarcoo who had been at that role since 2017.

This is the first time a foreign coach is being put in charge of the Queens since Ghana joined women association football in 1994 and she will be the second female after her predecessor to handle the team.

Since 1993 when Coach Jones Ofosuhene briefly handled the team as the first coach before I.K Edusei took over, there have been 17others and the Swiss will be the 19th coach.

Task

Apart from building a winsome team, the new Black Queens coach and her team would have to find a way of solving the other issues that have bedeviled the team and may have contributed to the team’s poor showing.

Some of these issues – the willingness of foreign-based players to play, getting the needed logistics as well as an age-long psychological problem that causes the team to cave in when it matters most.

Who is Nora Häuptle

Having worked briefly with Ghana’s Under-20 female team, the Black Princesses during their 2022 Women’s World Cup (WWC) campaign in Costa Rica as a technical advisor, the GFA may have been convinced about her capabilities and competencies to have gone ahead to hire her as the coach for the female senior side.

Coach Häuptle, a former player, is a product of the University of Bern from where she attained her Masters in Sports Sciences as well as a Bachelor of Philosophy and Minor in Theatre Sciences.

As a coach, she holds a UEFA Pro Licence certificate and has previously worked as an Instructor for the Swiss Football Association.

Also, she has Diploma Certificates in UEFA Mentorship Hope Powell – Brighton and Hove Albion FC, CAS Sports Management – University of St. Gallen and Shalkeh 04, Athletics Coach – Swiss Football Association and Swiss Tennis, Strength and Conditioning – Swiss Olympic team, Olympic Weightlifting – Swiss Olympic team as well as EXOS Level I & FMS and Sailing and Motoboat Licence.

She has among other teams, coached Swiss side, FC Thun, female Bundelisga side, SC Sands in 2021 and proceeded to Israel in December 2021, to be the head coach of Israel's female team.

She was barely in charge for a month as she left the job in January 2022 and later in July, was appointed the technical advisor to Ghana’s Princesses.

Credentials

Coach Häuptle is a product of the University of Bern where she attained her Masters in Sports Sciences – also a Bachelor of Philosophy and Minor in Theatre Sciences.

As a coach, she holds a UEFA Pro Licence certificate and has previously worked as an Instructor for the Swiss Football Association.

Also, she has Diploma Certificates in UEFA Mentorship Hope Powell – Brighton and Hove Albion FC, CAS Sports Management – University of St. Gallen and Shalkeh 04, Athletics Coach – Swiss Football Association and Swiss Tennis, Strength and Conditioning – Swiss Olympic team, Olympic Weightlifting – Swiss Olympic team as well as EXOS Level I & FMS and Sailing and Motoboat Licence.

Playing Career

She played for BSC Young Boys, FFC Zuchwil 05, FC Twente Enschade, FC Thun and the Swiss national team between 1996 and 2010. From 2009 to 2012 she was coach at FC Thun and later worked as a conditioning coach for Tennis player Romina Oprandi.

LIST OF COACHES OF BLACK QUEENS

1993 : JONES OFOSUHENE
1993-1994 : A.K. EDUSEI
1994-1996 : OKO ARYEE
1996- 1997: JONEs OFOSUHENE
1997-1999: E.K AFRANIE
2000 : P.S.K. PAHA
2001-2003 : OKO ARYEE
2003-2004: JOHN ESHUN
2005-2007: ISAAC PAHA
2008-2009: MUMUNI GAMEL
2009: BASHIR HAYFORD
2010: A.K. EDUSEI
2011 -2012: KUUKU DADZIE
2012-2017: YUSIF BASIGI
2017: DIDI DRAMANI
2018: MERCY TAGOE QUARCOO
2018: BASHIR HAYFORD
2019-2022: MERCY TAGOE QUARCOO
2023: NORA HÄUPTLE