The National Sports Authority (NSA) has taken center stage in the sporting fraternity following allegations of a visa scheme that went awry.


The NSA denied allegations that some individuals within the Authority received about US$623,000 from members of the public in exchange for facilitating visas for the FIFA World Cup.


There have been reports from some journalists alleging that NSA Director-General Yaw Ampofo Ankrah was involved in the visa issues and was paid huge sums of money as a commission.


Petition and Police Probe


The aggrieved individuals put their concerns together in the form of a petition and submitted it to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service.

How Sports Ministry paid a purse holder $10,000 at the 2026 World Cup

The NSA has confirmed that the CID is investigating the matter following the submission of the petition. The Authority has vowed to cooperate fully with the investigations.


NSA Denies Allegations


"The NSA legal team is cooperating with police investigations. The Director-General has not granted any media house an interview on these false allegations.


Treat such reckless news with the contempt it deserves," a statement from the NSA read.


Minority Demands NSA Boss' Removal


The Minority in Parliament has intensified calls for action against NSA Director-General Yaw Ampofo Ankrah over an alleged visa facilitation arrangement connected to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.


The Minority is demanding that President John Dramani Mahama either dismiss Ampofo Ankrah or direct him to step aside while investigations into the matter continue.


The Ranking Member on Parliament's Youth and Sports Committee, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, told journalists that the NSA Director-General and some staff had been reporting to the CID for questioning over an arrangement alleged to have generated about US$600,000.


"We therefore call on the President to dismiss the Director-General of the National Sports Authority with immediate effect, or, at the very least, require him to step aside pending the conclusion of the investigation," he said.


TRIBE FEST Involvement


The NSA said it had not engaged in, sanctioned or authorised any visa-related activities of the kind alleged in the publication.


The Authority clarified that TRIBE FEST was a FIFA-licensed partner involved in fan-experience activities, World Cup viewing events and event mobilisation in collaboration with the NSA, the Ghana Tourism Authority and other partners.


However, it stressed that the arrangement did not authorise TRIBE FEST, any NSA employee, or any other individual to collect money for visa procurement on behalf of the Authority.


SB/VPO