The $12.5 Million Ghana is getting from FIFA could go a long way

During an era in which hundreds of millions of dollars, if not billions of dollars, are spent on building or renovating sports venues, the idea of Ghana moving the needle for Baba Yara with $12.5 million isn’t laughable.

But not so fast.

While these funds certainly will not cover everything, they could put a dent in whatever it costs to bring the stadium back up to international code. We do not have official numbers on the recent Accra Stadium renovations, but the work they had done in 2020 ran roughly $22.4 million. Before that, in 2018, they did about, as luck would have it, $12.5 million worth of work.

And though they underwent a more wholesale refresh and reconstruction in 2007, ahead of the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, even that body of work checked in at $31 million.

If we go ahead and take the highest of those renovations on Accra Stadium, using the $12.5 million check coming from FIFA would cover over 40 percent of the costs. That is nothing if not a good start.

Heck, we are not even saying that the work must begin right away. Create a special fund and have it built up before beginning renovations.

Basically, whatever’s the best path to Ghana having more than one venue approved for international play is the one they should be traveling down. We do not mean to imply it will be easy. But it’s necessary. And the $12.5 million coming from FIFA should at least make it easier.