McDan Group CEO urges GFA to clean up gambling, match fixing mess in Ghana football

Daniel McKorley, the Chief Executive Officer of McDan Group of Companies, has urged the leadership of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to clean up the football ecosystem to make it more attractive for sponsorship deals.

Currently, the Ghana Premier League is without a headline sponsor after betPawa abruptly ended its three-year contract with the GFA midway through last season.

Despite this setback, GFA President Kurt Okraku recently reassured the public during a media engagement in Sunyani that efforts are underway to secure a new headline sponsor.

In an interview, McKorley expressed his willingness to sponsor the Ghana Premier League but voiced concerns over issues such as gambling and match-fixing that have plagued the sport.

"I can sponsor the Ghana Premier League, but the gambling is too much," McKorley told Asempa FM.

"The match-fixing is collapsing our game. You watch a game and see a goalkeeper concede a goal in a way that’s laughable—it’s clear someone must win a bet."

He emphasized that while football is a beautiful sport, the integrity of the game in Ghana is at risk, and players are unable to sustain long careers due to these issues.

McKorley called on the GFA to take serious measures to sanitize the sport.

As the 2024/25 Ghana Premier League season approaches, with a kickoff date set for September 6, the call for reform comes at a crucial time for the future of Ghanaian football.