The manager for the Club Licensing Department at the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Esme Mends, has provided further insights into Hearts of Oak and Kotoko’s struggle to have their home venues approved.
With the exclusion of Dr. Kwame Kyei Sports Complex, Nsekyire Sports Complex, Dun’s Park, TnA Stadium, and Kpando Heart of Lions, five venues have been conditionally approved pending re-inspection, while the other five have been either unapproved.
The two biggest traditional clubs in the Ghana Premier League (GPL), Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko, are racing against time to have their respective venues approved ahead of the league’s resumption.
According to the Mends, a former Hearts of Oak captain, the home venues of the two clubs lacked a safety zone, despite satisfying other requirements.
“Baba Yara and UG Stadium have no safe zone. The team buses are too exposed to the fans. Regulations state supporters must not have access to the team buses and playing officials.
That is the only issue; aside from that, the pitches are in good condition, and CCTV cameras have been installed,” he said on the Sports Pack show on Max FM.
The re-inspection exercise will take place on March 9.
