President John Dramani Mahama has announced plans to designate selected schools for training budding sports talents.

He made this announcement on July 30 during a meeting at the Jubilee House with the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the Black Queens, who had just returned from winning bronze at the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.

President Mahama disclosed that his administration would oversee the scouting of talented students, bring them together in designated schools, and provide them with the necessary infrastructure.

He hinted at their potential to be trained well enough to represent the senior national teams in the future.

"We are also going to equip some of the schools around the country as sports schools. We will give them all the infrastructure they need. [We will] assemble the best talents from the schools so that they can train and study at the same time and build their talents to join the senior team," he said.

The initiative is expected to create a clear pathway for young athletes to balance academic pursuits with elite sports training.

President Mahama's meeting with the Black Queens came after Ghana’s Black Queens ended the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in third, clinching a bronze medal for the first time since 2016.

They made a courtesy visit to the president to present their medals and thank him for the government's support during the tournament.

They were warmly received by the president and the Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, who praised them for their resilience and stunning performance during the tournament.

President Mahama commended them for their efforts in securing the bronze medals, acknowledging the difficulty in clashing with a team in their home.

He said, but for the penalties, the Queens would have been the reigning champions by now.

“It was just unfortunate that you came up against the host nation at a very critical time. Playing against a home team is never easy, but you held them throughout.”

“It was only the penalties that let us down. So, all is not lost. Your best days are still ahead of you.”

He told them to go for gold. “I’m an optimist. I know I’ll see you here before I leave office as President with a gold medal.”

The president also revealed that his outfit will give priority to athletes during security service recruitment.

“I have asked the Minister of Interior to give priority to athletes when recruiting the security services.”

He emphasised that athletes deserve structured opportunities to combine their sporting careers with professional roles and called for the revival of the Security Services Sports Association (SESSA) games to help scout talent.

“We must reintroduce the Security Services Sports Association (SESSA) games and let the security services compete amongst themselves, and then Kurt (GFA President) and co will be standing there, watching and picking the talents and forming the national teams.”

The Security Services Sports Association Games are inter-agency sporting competitions among Ghana’s national security services. It was established in 1987 to promote fitness, discipline, and camaraderie among personnel from the Ghana Armed Forces, Ghana Police Service, Ghana Prisons Service, Ghana National Fire Service, Ghana Immigration Service, and Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).

Somewhere in 2014, the sporting competition was suspended, reportedly due to a lack of coordination, funding, and institutional support for the Games.

However, in October last year, the Games were relaunched in October 2024 at the University of Ghana Sports Directorate.

They serve as a talent discovery platform, helping identify athletes who can represent Ghana at national and international levels.

Referring to the School Feeding Programme, the president made another pledge to the Queens that they are planning to set up a fund earmarked for sports, only stressing the need for consistent investment in sports infrastructure, logistics, and athlete welfare.

“We are thinking about a dedicated source for funding sports.”

This is good news for the Black Queens, as over the years, there have been instances where these athletes have complained about unpaid bonuses and other financial commitments.Over the years, sports development in Ghana has been hampered by inconsistent funding, poor infrastructure maintenance, and delayed payments of bonuses and allowances.

Black Queens and their WAFCON journey

Although the Black Queens didn't have a very encouraging start on July 7 in their 2024 WAFCON campaign, after a 0-2 loss to South Africa, they regained some ground on July 11 by drawing 1–1 with Mali.

They made a resounding comeback on July 14 with a convincing 4–1 win over Tanzania, securing second place in the group and a spot in the quarterfinals. The victory capped off the group stage on a strong note.

On July 19, they faced Algeria in a tightly contested quarterfinal that ended 0–0 in regulation time. The Queens held their nerve in the penalty shootout, winning 4–2 to advance to the semifinals.

Their semifinal clash with tournament hosts Morocco took place on July 22. After an intense 1–1 draw in extra time, Ghana unfortunately fell short in the shootout, losing 4–2, which placed them in the third-place playoff.

In a dramatic rematch against South Africa on July 25, Ghana again drew 1–1 in regulation time but triumphed 4–3 on penalties, clinching the bronze medal, their first since 2016. It was a tournament full of grit, redemption, and historic pride.

The recent attention the Black Queens have gained following their thrilling performance at WAFCON shows signs of visibility and public engagement. Over the years, Women's football have received less than 10% of total football reporting in Ghana.

Meanwhile, Ghana’s Black Stars has once again fallen about six places in latest FIFA rankings.

The team last year fell six places following their loss to Angola and a 1-1 draw with Niger during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers in September during the international break.

In the recent ranking, Ghana sits 76th in the FIFA World Rankings released on Thursday, July 10.

This leaves the former Africa giant out of the top 10 national teams as they continue the push to rejoin the continent’s elite.

According to the latest ranking, Argentina still holds its spot as number one, followed by Spain, France, and then England, with Brazil taking the fifth spot.

In Africa, Morocco sits on top with it's 12th position on the global level with 1,698.72 points. Senegal have also moved a spot up from its 19th position last year. Egypt dropped to 34 on the global scale but remains 3rd in Africa despite its slight dip from the 32nd position, which was caused by a quiet international window with no matches played since March.

Meanwhile, other teams gained points through qualifiers and friendlies, allowing them to climb higher in the rankings.

Algeria (36th), Nigeria (44th) and Ivory Coast (45th) follow closely, despite the latter’s recent AFCON success.