Ghana Football Association (GFA) has been fined ten thousand US dollars (USD 10,000) after one-man pitch invasion during 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against South Africa last year.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) disciplinary committee has handed out the punishment after a fan ran on and appeared to comfort Thomas Partey in later stages of Black Stars’ win over Bafana Bafana held at Cape Coast on November 14, 2019.
The pitch invader who was later identified as Awal Sulemana outran some security officials and made his way onto the pitch in the 74th minute of the match.
He was eventually apprehended by officials and sent to the police station at Cape Coast University where he spent the night before being sentenced to pay a fine of GHc2,400 by the Cape Coast Circuit Court for breaching public disturbance laws.
“There is a need for lovers of our national teams to behave appropriately within the laws of the game. This is really important because our actions have consequences for the GFA and the State at large,” said GFA general secretary, Prosper Harrison Addo.
“We will continue to educate the patrons of the game but there will be mechanisms to ensure that fans who cause the nation to lose money in this manner are brought to book.”
The Black Stars defeated South Africa 2-0 in the Group C of the 2021 AFCON qualifiers, with Thomas Partey and Mohammed Kudus netting the goals.
