{"id":127300,"date":"2025-09-07T20:36:15","date_gmt":"2025-09-07T20:36:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/127300\/"},"modified":"2025-09-07T20:36:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-07T20:36:15","slug":"why-the-black-stars-all-black-kit-has-only-ever-been-worn-once","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/127300\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the Black Stars\u2019 all-black kit has only ever been worn once"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Players <\/a>Players of the Black Stars before the game against Zimbabwe<\/p>\n

GhanaWeb Feature by Frank-Kamal Acheampong<\/p>\n

For most of their history, the Ghana Black Stars have carried themselves in white. It has been clean, dignified, and symbolic of a proud footballing nation. There has also been yellow, a burst of energy that fans embrace as another tradition. <\/p>\n

But in 2006, during the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt, the Black Stars tried something bold: they stepped into battle clad head to toe in black.

\nIt was meant to look powerful. Instead, it became cursed.<\/p>\n

A tournament gone wrong<\/p>\n

The 2006 Africa Cup of Nations was never kind to Ghana. Poor preparation, injuries to key players, and an unforgiving group left the Black Stars struggling from the start. <\/p>\n

Under Serbian coach Ratomir Dujkovic, the squad arrived in Egypt short on confidence, but still carrying the expectations of a football-mad nation.<\/p>\n

The group contained arch-rivals Nigeria, the dangerous Senegal, and underdogs Zimbabwe. After losing their opening game to Nigeria, Ghana\u2019s hopes hinged on getting a result against Zimbabwe in their final group match at the Ismailia Stadium on January 30, 2006.<\/p>\n

Watch Derrick Kohn and Kwasi Sibo\u2019s Black Stars initiation dance<\/a><\/p>\n

It was here that history and superstition would be born.<\/p>\n

The black jersey debut<\/p>\n

For the first time in a competitive match, the Black Stars wore an all-black strip: black shirts, black shorts, black socks. It was bold, striking, and symbolic. But for many fans, it felt unsettling. <\/p>\n

The Black Stars, in full mourning colours, seemed weighed down before the whistle even blew.<\/p>\n

The game started nervously. Ghana needed a win to stay alive, but the team lacked fluidity and confidence. The weight of expectation and perhaps the colour of their new kit hung heavy.<\/p>\n

A black day in Ismailia<\/p>\n

Disaster struck in the 59th minute. Defender Issah Ahmed, attempting to clear a cross, sliced the ball into his own net. Suddenly, Ghana were behind. Ten minutes later, Benjani Mwaruwari bundled in a second goal for Zimbabwe, and the Black Stars\u2019 dream of advancing evaporated.<\/p>\n

A late strike from Baba Adamu pulled one back, but it was too little, too late. The final whistle confirmed Ghana\u2019s 2\u20131 defeat and elimination from the tournament.<\/p>\n

As the players trudged off the pitch, Zimbabwean fans in the stands unfurled a hand-painted sign that captured the mood:<\/p>\n

\u201cBlack day for Black Stars.\u201d<\/p>\n

The words, darkly ironic, would seal the fate of the jersey forever.<\/p>\n

The birth of a curse<\/p>\n

In the aftermath, fans didn\u2019t just blame poor preparation or bad luck, they pointed to the jersey itself. The all-black kit, worn once and never again, became a symbol of misfortune. To many, it was cursed.<\/p>\n

From that day, the Black Stars never wore an all-black kit in a competitive match. Even when black returned to Ghana\u2019s jerseys in later years, it became the training kits. The plain, funereal black strip of 2006 was banished, consigned to memory.<\/p>\n

A legacy in shadows<\/p>\n

Time has softened the wound of Ghana\u2019s early exit in 2006, but the stigma remains. Among fans, the words \u201call-black jersey\u201d still evoke that night in Ismailia, the own goal, Benjani\u2019s strike, Baba Adamu\u2019s consolation, and the sign declaring a \u201cBlack Day for Black Stars.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was the first and last time the Black Stars wore an all-black kit. A bold experiment turned into a superstition. A jersey transformed into a curse.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile watch as Black Stars resume training at Accra Sports Stadium ahead of Mali clash<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Players of the Black Stars before the game against Zimbabwe GhanaWeb Feature by Frank-Kamal Acheampong For most of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":127301,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-127300","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-soccer","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127300","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127300"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127300\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127300"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127300"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127300"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}