Ghana President John Dramani Mahama has called for improvements in refereeing, saying concerns over match officiating are damaging the credibility of domestic football and contributing to falling attendances at league games.
Mahama made the comments during a meeting with representatives of Ghanaian clubs at the Jubilee House on Tuesday, where he highlighted refereeing as one of the major challenges facing the country’s domestic game.
The President said a widespread perception that some matches are effectively decided before kick-off is making the league less competitive and discouraging supporters from attending matches.
“Unfortunately, refereeing is one of the things that is destroying our soccer. The matches are played before they are played,” Mahama said.
He said supporters believe there are arrangements made around some matches before the teams take to the field, creating the impression that the outcome has already been determined.
“Everybody knows that, for every match, there is a ways-and-means budget. It makes the league less competitive because the match has already been played,” he added.
“Somebody has won. So what’s the use going to play the match anyway?”
Mahama urged the Ghana Referees Association and the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to address the concerns and work together to raise the standard of refereeing in the domestic game.
“And so both the Ghana Referees Association and the [Ghana] FA should look to see how we can improve refereeing,” he said.
The President also linked the issue directly to the declining number of spectators at Ghanaian league matches.
According to Mahama, some supporters have become reluctant to visit stadiums because they believe the results of matches have already been determined before the games begin.
“A lot of the spectators have abandoned going to watch matches because they believe that the matches are preset before they even go to play the match. So spectator numbers are dwindling,” Mahama said.
His comments came during a courtesy engagement involving Medeama, Nations FC and Ampem Darkoa Ladies at the Jubilee House.
The meeting provided an opportunity for the President to discuss wider issues affecting Ghanaian club football, including the need to rebuild confidence in the domestic competition.
Mahama’s focus on officiating comes as concerns about the credibility of matches threaten, in his view, to affect both competitiveness on the pitch and interest among supporters.
A league depends on supporters believing that matches are being decided fairly on the field. Mahama said the perception that results can be influenced before matches are played is undermining that confidence.
He argued that if supporters believe the outcome has already been settled, there is little incentive for them to spend time and money attending matches.
That, he said, is contributing to the reduction in crowds at league venues.
The President therefore called for the country’s football authorities to take the issue of refereeing seriously and examine ways of improving standards.
Both the GFA and the Ghana Referees Association were specifically urged to play a role in addressing the problem.
Mahama’s comments also formed part of a broader discussion about the condition of Ghanaian club football and what needs to be done to strengthen the domestic game.
The engagement with Medeama, Nations FC and Ampem Darkoa Ladies allowed the President to raise concerns beyond individual clubs and focus on issues affecting Ghanaian football more broadly.
For Mahama, improving refereeing is central to restoring confidence in the competition.
He believes that credible officiating would help make matches more competitive and could encourage supporters who have stopped attending games to return to the stadiums.
The President’s call places responsibility on the football authorities to find ways of improving refereeing and addressing perceptions surrounding match outcomes.
His message was clear: restoring trust in officiating is important not only for the credibility of individual matches, but also for the future competitiveness and popularity of Ghana’s domestic league.
