The COVID-19 pandemic has already set the entire world on a halt. Even after the minimisation of the lockdown all around the world, a lot of factors come into play now apart from the fear of contracting the virus.
This pandemic has caused certain disruptions to football associations thereby imitating its effect across all sports to some extent with many leagues and matches being cancelled and postponed.
The effects of the pandemic have totally overwrought the sports ecosystem, starting from the governing bodies, organisers, teams and athletes to the non-stop live content we have come to expect.
Owners, broadcasters and sponsors are trying to steer around the impacts and implications of event cancellations and modifications. It is nearly impossible to simultaneously manage fan expectations, minimise operational disruption and plan for a future that is no way similar to the past.
Since all the tournaments were almost closed, the online casinos also suffered a lot in their business. In spite of such adverse situation, it was found that some of the top Ghanaian Online Casinos performed really well under such circumstances. The casinos which have got some reputation got some business.
The upcoming premier leagues are under consideration given they follow all the COVID-19 protocols. The screening of the players, coaching staff and official of 18 preeminent league clubs is said to begin on October 22, 2020 as a part of the preparations towards 2020-21 football season which is expected to begin from November 13 onwards. In Ghana, Dawu based Dreams FC is one of the first clubs that is to be tested.
An alliance between the Ghana Football Association and the government is made to assure that football is played in the safest possible way. All certified players, coaching staff and other allied officials will go through the procedure and maintain the aforesaid protocols for the objective of maintaining competition integrity, fairness and transparency. Its only when all such customs are maintained, a successful 2020-21 season would be established.
The GFA is also stated to hold safety and security training for premier league clubs. It is announced that the GFA has devised a one-day workshop on November 5, 2020 for safety and security officers of the 18 Premier League clubs at the GFA secretariat at 9am.
All professional football clubs are advised to submit to the name of their safety and security officer, contact details E-mail addresses and official club emails by close of business to the GFA Secretariat. The clubs are also free to contact the secretary to the safety and security committee for further assistance.
This SARS virus is not the only hardship that football is facing this season. The National Sports Authority has released huge charges to Clubs for the usage of the Accra Sports Stadium. This has become even more of a challenge to Ghana Football owed to the absence of multiple such soccer bowls. The NSA has set up differentiated prices for the usage of the stadium.
A statement on 19th October was released by the NSA separating their charges in three categories A, B, and C respectively. “Category A” match would be regulated under the already established sharing formula i.e. “Function Statement”. According to the custodians of the National Sports Authority, a home team would be made to pay Twenty Thousand Ghana Cedis per match under “Category B” and Fifteen Thousand Ghana Cedis per game under “Category C”.
The NSA statement classified the categories according to which team is playing. Matches between Hearts and Kotoko and the National Teams are grouped under “Category A”. Matches between Hearts and Kotoko and other Premier League clubs are pooled into “Category B” and matches between other clubs excluding Hearts and Kotoko are grouped under “Category C”. Hence, it could be deduced that five teams need to equip and embrace themselves for arranging the cash in order to use the facility.
In the meantime, in a recent development, Asante Kotoko has signed the promising goalkeeper Felix Annan. He was advised by the former Black Stars midfielder, Charles Taylor to stay at Kotoko and fight for his place. The captain, 25, has over the years proved himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the Ghana Premier League where he has on numerous occasions been associated with the Black Stars team. Previously, for some incomprehensible reason, Felix Annan played second fiddle to Kwame Baah for the most part of the 2019-20 seasons.
However despite difference in opinions, it appears as if Annan is no longer considered as the first choice goalkeeper for Asante Kotoko. Further adding to the misfortune, the club recently signed the esteemed goalkeeper Razak Abalora after the goalie ended his stay at Azam FC.
In spite of the rugged competition, Charles Taylor insists that Felix Annan must stay and fight for his place in the Asante Kotoko team.
In the recent world FIFA rankings, the position of Ghana has gone down and experts are really worried about the factor. The Ghana Premier League legend Charles Taylor feels that the assistant coaches are responsible for the collapse of the teams in Ghana and going down in FIFA rankings. Charles Taylor urged Accra Hearts of Oak to be cautious in their endeavour in appointing a deputy for the head coach Edward Nii Odoom.
The Phobians have been without an assistant coach since Match day 2 of the 2019-20 Ghana Premier League season. For the majority of the campaign that was eventually cancelled in lieu of the Corona virus pandemic, Coach Edward Nii Odoom worked alone while training even the youth team of the club. Charles Taylor recommended the management of Accra Hearts of Oak to allow the dedicated coach Odoom to select his preferred assistant.
Although it might seem silly to ponder over sports at the dire situation of the pandemic, its influence on the sports business is long-term. Corona virus is a menace to the sports ecosystem in multiple ways. It is not only a threat to finance and medical health but also to maintenance of tradition and normalcy. Loss of tradition will have serious repercussions beyond rooting interests, livelihoods will be compromised.