Cape Coast Stadium experienced a power outage during a match between the Ghanaian Black Princesses and the Ethiopian team on Saturday, March 9, 2024.
This disruption occurred during the ongoing All African Games, leaving the stadium without electricity for more than 20 minutes. Sports journalist Fentuo Tahiru Fentuo reported that the power outage occurred approximately 36 minutes into the match.
“The lights have gone out inside the Cape Coast Sports Stadium, 36 minutes into Ghana vs. Ethiopia. The lights are not back yet after almost 20 minutes of waiting. Waiting continues! This is unacceptable,” he posted on X.
While power was later restored for the game to continue, the journalist reported that the stadium experienced yet another power cut right before halftime, prompting the referee to end the game.
“Lights went off again on the stroke of half time, so ref just ended it with some minutes still left of additional time.
“But lights are back on again as the players emerge for the start of the second half,” he updated his followers.
The Ghanaian government invested $195 million solely in infrastructure for the games scheduled from March 8, 2024, to March 23, 2024.
Additionally, an extra $48 million was allocated for operational expenses related to the games. Despite this substantial investment, critics have voiced concerns about the inadequate organisation of the event.
Despite these criticisms, the match between the Black Princesses and Ethiopia concluded with a 1-0 victory for the Ghanaian team.
When the goal is to see what can be gotten out of the games into individual pockets this is what to expect. 192 million dollars and more still matches have to be cancelled because of light off. Some organisers indeed!