Cash Starting to Roll In

Like a lot of cynics, when it comes to football, even pristine National Team football, I tend to follow the money. One of my contentions has always been that the great advantage Cameroon have had is not the quality of their players (not that Eto’o is anything to sneeze at, certainly), but that their breakthrough World Cup success spawned corporate sponsorship deals that allowed the cash to fully develop their youth programs and grow the strength of their national squad.

Now that Ghana are in the World Cup, we are getting a little taste of that cheese as well. In addition to stalwarts Goldfields Ghana, loyal Guiness and fickle Puma, additional valuable corporate sponsorships are starting to roll in. The newest one is $150,000 to the Stars from rice importer Continental Commodities. In addition to our World Cup participation riches, the GFA are developing a kitty.

The question of the day is: How to spend the money? Already ideas are popping up all over. The bureaucrats and local squads want new stadiums. The players want raises to induce better players to return more frequently. They youth want better parks and practice pitches.

What’s your thought?