Sports Minister Kofi Adams plans to close Accra Sports Stadium for renovations

Minister for Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, has revealed that the government plans to close the Accra Sports Stadium for renovation work after the March international window.

Ghana will face Chad in a 2026 World Cup qualifier on Friday marking the first football match at the venue since November 2024.

However, despite four months of inactivity, authorities have been unable to address the stadium’s glaring issues. The Minister has hinted that the “Nation’s Wembley” is no longer fit for purpose, reinforcing the need for urgent repairs.

“We have to close the Accra Sports Stadium to refurbish it and bring it up to standard,” he said in an interview with TV3.

“Following the assessment that we did, the engineers advised that the entire upper stand towards the independence square, must not be utilized because it has integrity issues, so we will not have supporters there.

“When we were assessing the floodlights, if you look at the knobs that hold the lights, everything is rusty.”

The Accra Sports Stadium last underwent major renovations in 2018, in preparation for that year’s Women’s AFCON tournament, which was hosted by the country.

Kofi Adams meanwhile, visited the Black Stars at the Accra Sports Stadium on Monday to motivate the team ahead of their upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Chad and Madagascar.

Accompanied by Yaw Ampofo Ankrah, Director General of the National Sports Authority, Hon. Adams extended a warm welcome to the team in Accra and wished them the best of luck in their upcoming fixtures.

He assured the players that the stadium would be in excellent condition for the match against Chad.

The Black Stars, who opened camp on Monday, had nine players participate in training at the Accra Sports Stadium.