Keep Satellites team for next Olympics — Sports Minister
The Minister 0f Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, has urged the country's football authorities to keep the fulcrum of the national U-20 team in anticipation of future competitions especially for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
The Satellites crashed out of the 2025 U-20 Arica Cup of Nations (AFCON) in the quarter finals on penalties to host nation, Egypt last week.
Consequently Ghana also failed to grab one of Africa's four tickets to the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile later this year.
Disappointment
It was a disappointing end to the tournament for enterprising young coach, Desmond Ofei's team who topped their preliminary group and remained undefeated in regulation time during the competition.
An all-round team anchored by playmaker Abdul Aziz Issah sold beautiful, possession-based attacking football that left no one in doubt about their huge potential and won them a lot of admirers.
The MP for Buem was very emphatic on his expectations of the country's Olympic chieftains when the newly sworn-in President and board of the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC) paid a courtesy call at the Ministries to formally introduce themselves.
"They (Satellites) painfully exited the tournament in the quarter finals but that is a very good team and I believe it is a team that when you keep it with few additions, they will grow to become the U-23 team that will participate in the next Olympics in USA," Hon Adams said.
"When that time comes I believe football and other sports will make us proud. But let's prioritise this Satellites team because I was very impressed with their performance and I strongly believe they can enhance Ghana's medal prospects if properly maintained together," he added.
The first African country to win a medal in football at the Olympics, Ghana has abysmally failed to replicate the Barcelona '92 bronze winning heroics of Kwame Ayew and company.
The Black Meteors in fact, did last participate at the Olympics as far back as Athens 2004.
