The three presidents under whom Ghana won AFCON

Ghana have won four AFCON titles

Ghana won two AFCON trophies under Kwame Nkrumah

Ghana’s last AFCON triumph was in 1982 under Jerry John Rawlings

The African Cup of Nations(AFCON) is 30 days away from kick-off and Ghana will be seeking to win the trophy for the fifth time.

Ghana is in Group C with Morocco, Gabon, and Comoros. Winning has been a priority for recent governments in the fourth republic. Unfortunately, none of the presidents has been able to achieve eagerly wanted that success.

The last time the Black Stars won Africa’s most prestigious title was in 1982. Thus, the country has gone 40 years without the trophy and has been to the finals three times in the process.

Here are the presidents under whom Ghana won the AFCON

Kwame Nkrumah, 1963 and 1965

Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president, remains the only Ghanaian president to have seen the Black Stars win two AFCON titles under his regime.

In 1963, Ghana hosted the competition for the first time and was drawn in Group A together with Ethiopia and Tunisia. Unlike today, the tournament was played with six countries, grouped into two groups of three with the group winners progressing to the final whiles the runners-up challenging for third place.

Ghana drew one-all in the first game against Tunisia. A 2-0 win in the second match over defending champions Ethiopia propelled the team to top the group.

In the final, Ghana thumped Sudan 3-0. Edward Kobina Acquah scored a brace with Aggrey-fyn adding another to secure Ghana a first-ever AFCON triumph.

1965

Ghana entered the competition as defending champions in Tunisia. The Black Stars were in Group B alongside Ivory Coast and Congo-Leopoldville(now DR Congo).

Ghana won the group, beating Congo-Leopoldville 5-2 and Ivory Coast 4-1. In the final, Ghana beat the host nation, Tunisia 3-2 after extra time.

Abrefa Busia, 1978

Ghana’s third AFCON arrived under the leadership of Abrefa Busia. That was the second time the west African country hosted and won the trophy.

The competition had gone through changes with the number of participants increased to 8, which led to the introduction of semi-final ties.

Ghana was paired in Group A alongside Nigeria, Zambia and Upper Volta(now Burkina Faso). The Black Stars beat Zambia 2-1, drew 1-1 with Nigeria, before beating Upper Volta 3-0 to end the group stage as group winners.

In the semis, Ghana pipped Tunisia 1-0 to set up a final tire against Uganda. The tournament’s joint top scorer Opoku Afriyie scored a brace as Ghana defeated the Cranes 2-0 at the Accra Sports Stadium.

Jerry John Rawlings, 1982

Yet another Group A appearance, this time with Libya-host nation, Cameroon, and Tunisia. Ghana qualified for the semi-finals after finishing second. Two-all draw with Libya, a goalless draw with Cameroon and a 1-0 win over Tunisia was enough to hand Ghana a semi-final qualification.

The Black Stars met Algeria in a tight tie that finished 3-2 after extra time in favour of Ghana. Gorge Alhassan scored an early opener, Algeria staged a comeback to lead 2-1 before Samuel Opoku Nti grabbed an equaliser with a 90th minutes strike. Alhassan scored in the extra time to secure the win.

In the final against Libya, the match stretched to penalties after George Alhassan’s lead was cancelled out by Al-Beshari. Ghana won 7-6 on penalties.