Deputy Director General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Alhaji Abdul Majeed Bawa, has addressed the recent disturbances at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium following Ghana's 1-0 loss to Angola in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.

After the match, frustration among fans escalated, leading to considerable damage at the stadium. Supporters threw objects onto the pitch and vandalised advertising panels.

In an interview with Asempa FM, Bawa attributed the chaos to the actions of mainly young fans who were upset over losses related to bets placed on the match's outcome.

“They destroyed, they threw missiles and all manner of things onto the pitch. That one too, is it caused by the NSA? They destroyed the pitch panels,” Bawa stated, dismissing the idea that the NSA could have prevented the incident.

He further suggested that the fans’ actions were linked to their frustration over losing their bets rather than just the defeat itself.

“Honestly, that’s my feeling because if you see all those people who did that thing, they are all young guys,” Bawa added.

Reflecting on the situation, Bawa emphasised that the crowd’s reaction likely would have been different had Ghana won.

“Throwing missiles because we lost. I believe they would not have done that if Ghana had won. After the tension subsided, you ask them and they were saying they disappointed them and they lost. Not that Ghana has lost, oh, but they lost a bet,” he explained.

Ghana’s loss to Angola has left the Black Stars with a challenging start in their AFCON 2025 qualifying campaign.

The team will need to recover quickly as they prepare to face Niger in the second match of the qualifiers on Monday, September 9.