'Ghana was robbed' – Kofi Adams slams refereeing at World Cup after Black Stars draw with England

Minister for Sports and Recreation Kofi Adams has strongly criticised the officiating in Ghana's FIFA World Cup clash against England, claiming the Black Stars were denied key decisions during the match.

Despite Ghana's impressive performance in the hard-fought draw, Adams believes several refereeing calls went against the Black Stars and ultimately affected the outcome of the game.

Speaking in an interview with Citi Sports, the sports minister praised the Ghanaian players for their determination and resilience while expressing frustration over some of the decisions made by match officials.

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"Everything is clear; Ghana was robbed. Several decisions went against us.”

“We came to this World Cup with many people giving us no chance, but today we’ve become the centre of attention."

Adams specifically pointed to incidents involving England midfielder Jude Bellingham and a challenge on Ghana forward Prince Adu Kwabena, insisting that the Black Stars did not receive fair treatment from the referee.

The minister also appealed to Canadian authorities to reconsider their decision to deny Black Stars vice-captain Thomas Partey a visa, arguing that Ghana should be allowed to field its strongest possible squad at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

“We thought that the decision not to issue Thomas’ visa was a high-handed decision. We thought he could have been allowed to go in and partake. And I believe that the Canadians should be able to review that decision.

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“And when a fresh application is made for them to decide in favour of Thomas Partey so he can do what he does best.”

According to Adams, efforts are ongoing behind the scenes to resolve the situation should Ghana progress to the knockout stages, where some matches are scheduled to be played in Canada.

“We’ll do the best that we have to do. That’s the only thing that we can do.

“And we appeal to the Canadians in the spirit of their agreeing to host the World Cup to know that we are also a participating country and we want the best to represent us.

“And on this occasion, where especially the person has not been found guilty, they will temper… I wouldn’t even say justice with mercy, but they will make a decision in favour of Thomas Partey being issued with a visa to enable him to do what, like I said, he does best.”

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The Black Stars have accumulated four points from their opening two matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup and remain in a strong position to qualify for the knockout stages.

Ghana will now turn its attention to a crucial final Group L encounter against Croatia, with qualification to the next round potentially at stake.