Welcome to Ghana, a nation whose main sport is football (soccer). A sport that goes beyond borders and builds bridges globally through tournaments like the World Cup amongst others. The Ghana Football League is, naturally, a very important institution in a country that experiences a raw spectrum of emotions when their favorite teams are playing.
Like every country whose main sport is football, Ghana has a local league made up of football teams that normally partake in international competitions, such as Asamoah Gyan and André Morgan Rami Ayew, two of the most famous athletes in Ghana. For these teams and leagues games to thrive, they have to be sponsored. Let us take a closer look at the structure of the Ghanaian Football league, The Ghana Football Association and how one can sponsor this sport.
The Ghana Football Association (GFA)
The Ghana Football Association is the umbrella organization for all football clubs and other interest groups in the country. The GFA is responsible for overseeing, promoting and developing Ghana football at all levels, from the grass roots through to the professional game.
When left unchecked, people would do whatever it takes to gain unfair advantage over others when competing. Thus, the Ghana Football Association is responsible for protecting the integrity of the sports discipline against manipulation, doping and other unfair practices as well as organizing domestic competitions.
The GFA is composed of a number of the political bodies and the administration. The highest political position is the GFA president who is elected every four years.
It has over 100 employees from all parts of the country but has its headquarters based in Accra. The GFA organizes and oversees many competitions to keep the game alive, serve as a training and preparation grounds for developing talents who would go ahead and influence change in the world. Some of these competitions are:
- The Ghana Premier League
- The Division One League
- The FA Cup
- The Super Cup
- The GFA Gala
- The Women’s Cup
- The Women’s FA Cup
- The Women’s Super-Cup
Ghana Premier League
The Ghana Premier League is the top professional division of the football league system in Ghana. The league was officially formed in 1956 after the last colonial era “Gold Coast Club Competition” was held in 1953-1954.
The league was subsequently organized by The Ghana Football Association (GFA) which was formed in 1957 and managed by an established premier league committee.
Currently there are 18 clubs that compete in the league, with the bottom three clubs relegated at the end of the season and replaced by three clubs from the second-tier division who gain automatic promotion based on how they finish on their league table.
Division One League
The Division One League is the second-tier football league in Ghana. Second only behind the premier league. This division is made up of 48 clubs who compete in three zones in a league format made up of 16 clubs in each zone.
At the end of the season, three winning clubs, each from different zones, gain promotion.
Women’s Premier League
First launched in 2012, The Ghana Women’s football league was set up by The Ghana Football Association as a means to promote women’s soccer in Ghana. Before its implementation, only some regional areas had women’s leagues.
The league is played in two divisions, after the league stage, both division winners meet in a championship final to declare the champion for the season. Eight clubs partake in the 2 zone Competitions and a winner is selected after two finalists compete.
How to sponsor a club in the Ghana Football League
The GFA like most Football Associations around the world seek to bring in investors and sponsors to enhance and promote their league to help push the league brand across borders.
Brands from variety of business are beginning to shift part of their marketing and advertising budget to sport sponsorship and this is why: Firstly, many brands enjoy the opportunity to not only build a positive brand association with the GFA Ghana premier league, but also gain access to the multiple fan bases of various teams within the league.
Secondly, most firms are guaranteed engagement with prospective customers. For instance, if a firm sponsors a team within the league, their brand becomes synonymous with the team and as such, die hard and passionate fans not only identify with the team but also with the firm’s or sponsor’s brand.
This provides a platform for advertisement of various products and services to prospective customers who already have a soft spot for the firm’s brand.
One of the best advantages a firm can gain from sponsorship is that it provides a brand, numerous channels to activate within. From physical and in-person assets such as signage, logo on jerseys, and in-venue advertising to on-site activation and sampling to integrated digital and social media campaigns, a sponsorship can garner a brand tons of exposure.
The GFA has partnered with brands like star times, NASCO, Macron, MTN, Woodin, Rice Master, among others. Any brand or firm that seeks to sponsor the GFA should do so by going through the following process.
- The firm must send an application for a mandate addressed to the General Secretary of the Association indicating the property concern.
- The GFA will consider the request and grant the mandate for a specified period and then specify the GFA marketing property.
- The brand must provide progress updates to the association and negotiate key details of the sponsorship.
Once the sponsorship is secured and details are ironed out, the firm becomes an official sponsor.
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