Ghana have turned to Carlos Queiroz to complete the rebuilding of the Black Stars, handing the experienced Portuguese coach a fresh mandate that begins with qualification for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
The Ghana Football Association confirmed on Wednesday that it had reached an agreement with Queiroz to continue as head coach after his initial four-month contract, which covered the 2026 World Cup, expired following the tournament.
“The Ghana Football Association is pleased to announce that it has reached an agreement with Carlos Queiroz for his appointment as Head Coach of the Black Stars for the next phase of the team’s programme,” the GFA said.
The decision gives Queiroz an opportunity to tackle an assignment that carries considerably more weight than simply qualifying for another continental tournament.
Ghana, four-time African champions and traditionally one of the continent’s heavyweights, failed to qualify for the 2025 AFCON in Morocco, bringing to an end a run of 10 consecutive appearances at the tournament.
Their previous absence had come in 2004. Ghana finished bottom of their 2025 qualifying group without a victory, collecting only three points from their opening five matches before their elimination was confirmed following a 1-1 draw with Angola.
That failure left questions around a national team that had long been associated with competing at the business end of African football, but Queiroz’s arrival earlier this year helped restore some belief.
The 73-year-old, whose coaching career has included spells with Real Madrid, Portugal, Iran and Egypt, was appointed in April on a four-month contract specifically to lead Ghana at the 2026 World Cup, replacing Otto Addo.
Queiroz guided the Black Stars through the group stage before their campaign ended in the Round of 32 following a 1-0 defeat to Colombia in Kansas City. Ghana had earlier beaten Panama 1-0 and secured enough points to progress from a group that also contained England and Croatia.
His original mandate ended after the World Cup, but discussions involving the GFA, Ghana’s Ministry of Sports and Recreation and Queiroz resulted in an agreement for him to stay on.
“The new spell will begin with the upcoming international window,” the GFA said, with Ghana now turning their attention towards AFCON qualification.
For East African football followers, that mission carries extra interest because Ghana are attempting to book a place at the first Nations Cup staged in the region since Ethiopia hosted the competition in 1976.
Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania will jointly host the 24-team tournament between June 19 and July 17, 2027, the first AFCON to be staged across three countries.
Getting there will, however, require Queiroz to negotiate what CAF legends have already labelled the “Group of Death.”
Ghana were drawn in Group C alongside former champions Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia and Somalia, with only the top two qualifying for Pamoja 2027.
Former Côte d’Ivoire international Max Gradel, DR Congo legend Tresor Mputu and former Egypt goalkeeper Essam El Hadary all singled out the group as one of the most difficult following the May draw.
The presence of Côte d’Ivoire provides the headline contest, particularly given the history between two nations that have won six AFCON titles between them.
The Gambia have also demonstrated in recent years that they cannot be treated as outsiders, while Somalia complete a group in which Ghana can afford few mistakes after the disastrous qualifying campaign that kept them away from Morocco.
The first two qualifying matchdays will be played between September 21 and October 6, followed by another window in November before qualification concludes in March 2027.
Queiroz has less than a month to turn the positive signs from Ghana’s World Cup campaign into the beginning of a successful continental recovery.
When he first accepted the Ghana job, Queiroz described the assignment as more than another coaching post. “This is not just another job, it is a mission,” he said at the time.
The World Cup represented the first part of that mission. Getting the four-time African champions back to AFCON, and potentially into Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania next June, could ultimately determine how successful it becomes.