Ghana is preparing to put its national tourism brand on the global Premier League stage through a proposed front of shirt partnership between Visit Ghana and Sunderland, in a move designed to attract international visitors and strengthen the country’s tourism profile, as reported by CNBC Africa. The private sector led initiative was first announced by Ghana’s Parliament Speaker Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin in August, when he said discussions with Sunderland were at an advanced stage. Recent reports have valued the proposed partnership at about £10 million annually, although the figure has not been officially confirmed by either the Ghanaian government or Sunderland.
The partnership would give Visit Ghana prominent visibility across Premier League broadcasts, Sunderland’s digital platforms and the club’s international audience. If completed, Ghana would become the first African country to secure a front of shirt sponsorship with a Premier League club, creating a high profile platform for promoting its beaches, heritage, culture and wider tourism offering to football audiences around the world. Bagbin has stressed that the initiative is being driven by private sector funding, with the Ghana Football Association, Ministry of Sports and Recreation and Ministry of Finance providing support.
The reported £10 million valuation would make the arrangement Sunderland’s most valuable shirt sponsorship to date, according to current reports, while positioning tourism marketing as an increasingly important commercial use of Premier League football. The strategy follows a broader trend of African destinations using elite European football clubs to build international awareness, but Ghana’s proposed arrangement would place the country’s tourism identity directly at the centre of a club’s matchday visibility rather than on a secondary sponsorship position.
For Ghana, the commercial logic extends beyond brand exposure. Premier League football provides access to a global audience that could translate visibility into tourism interest, travel bookings, hospitality demand and broader investment awareness. With Visit Ghana expected to debut on Sunderland’s shirt ahead of the club’s September 12 Premier League meeting with Arsenal, the initiative could become one of Ghana’s most prominent international tourism campaigns and demonstrate how sports partnerships can be converted into national economic and destination marketing tools.
