Ghana’s Black Stars are already looking beyond mere qualification at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with officials insisting the team has the quality and ambition to make a meaningful impact on football’s biggest stage.

Drawn in Group L alongside Panama, England and Croatia, Ghana secured their place at the tournament after missing out on the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Their return in Qatar in 2022 ended in disappointment with a group-stage exit, but there is renewed belief that the story can be different this time.

Speaking to Akoma FM, Ghana Football Association Communications Director Henry Asante Twum said the target is clear: progress beyond the group phase and compete with confidence against the world’s best.

“Our target for the World Cup is to qualify from the group stage and be competitive,” he said. “We want to fight; we have the quality, and we believe we can match our quarter-final appearance and possibly go even further.”

Ghana famously reached the quarter-finals in South Africa in 2010, coming within a penalty kick of becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup. That run remains a benchmark for the current generation.

Asante Twum revealed that lessons have been learned from the 2022 campaign, particularly in strengthening the technical team around head coach Otto Addo.

“Following the Qatar 2022 World Cup, we strengthened the technical team,” he explained. “The coach has requested some new additions, and the FA is currently working on them. However, the individuals involved are under contract with their respective employers, making it difficult to disclose names at this time.”

Preparations for the expanded 48-team tournament are already taking shape. According to the GFA, details of Ghana’s training base and logistical arrangements will be announced in the first week of February. A provisional squad is expected in April, with the final 26-man roster to be confirmed by 1 June.

The Black Stars will begin their World Cup journey against Panama on 17 June in Toronto, before facing England in Boston. Their group campaign will conclude against Croatia on 27 June in Philadelphia.

With careful planning under way and expectations rising back home, Ghana will head to North America hoping to turn optimism into performance and restore their reputation as one of Africa’s most competitive forces on the world stage.