{"id":99050,"date":"2025-10-17T18:20:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T18:20:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=99050"},"modified":"2025-10-17T18:20:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-17T18:20:19","slug":"essien-describes-mansour-groups-right-to-dream-ghana-project-as-a-gift-to-the-youth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=99050","title":{"rendered":"Essien describes Mansour Group\u2019s Right to Dream Ghana project as a \u2018gift to the youth\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Michael Essien has praised the Mansour Group\u2019s plan to build a new Right to Dream (RTD) Academy near Accra, describing it as a transformative moment for youth development in Ghana.<\/p>\n

The project\u2014set to break ground in early 2026\u2014will replace RTD\u2019s Old Akrade base with a state-of-the-art campus that combines elite football coaching with rigorous academics.<\/p>\n

Government has welcomed the investment, calling it a vote of confidence in Ghana\u2019s young people and a boost to the country\u2019s reputation as a talent hub.<\/p>\n

RTD says all student scholarships will continue at a temporary Accra-area site during construction, with the new academy targeted to open as early as 2027.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a kid I never had the opportunities Right to Dream is offering now. I had to find my own way, and it wasn\u2019t easy. What Right to Dream is doing is a gift to the youth and future of Ghana, especially because academic education is such a big part of the program alongside the football,\u201d said Essien, the former Black Stars midfielder who now coaches at FC Nordsjaelland\u2014RTD\u2019s partner club in Denmark.<\/p>\n

The Mansour Group, which owns Right to Dream, has expanded the academy network since acquiring it in 2021 through Man Capital LLP.<\/p>\n

More than US$180m has been invested across the global RTD system, including around \u20ac15m in Ghana to date, and brand-new academies have opened in Cairo (2023) and San Diego (2025).<\/p>\n

The Accra-area project will serve nearly 100 student-athletes from Ghana and the wider region with upgraded classrooms, pitches, dormitories and performance facilities, while RTD\u2019s 127 Ghana-based employees will be retained throughout the transition.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd since the Mansour family took over the pledges and commitment to the students have only expanded. The new academy plans and investment in Ghana is a massive statement and will improve Right to Dream\u2019s Ghanaian program even further in the years to come,\u201d Essien added.<\/p>\n

Founded in 1999, RTD\u2019s model pairs education with football to give young people two pathways: professional sport or top-tier academics.<\/p>\n

Alumni have progressed to national teams, earned professional deals in Europe, North America and Africa, and secured scholarships at leading schools in the United States.<\/p>\n

That pipeline has been strengthened by Nordsjaelland, where RTD graduates play first-team minutes in a competitive European league under coaches\u2014like Essien\u2014who understand the academy\u2019s culture.<\/p>\n

\u201cI work with the young people and players coming through the academy on and off the pitch every day. It gives me great joy to help them develop further and assist them in reaching the next steps of their future with endless potential,\u201d Essien said.<\/p>\n

I see many of them grow every day in Denmark, pushed by their teammates from other parts of RTD\u2019s global community, and I know they all have the opportunity, talent, and dream to make their families and Ghana proud.\u201d<\/p>\n

Officials say the temporary Accra facility will ensure continuity of training, schooling and welfare programmes until the new campus opens.<\/p>\n

The Ministry of Sports and Recreation has framed the plan as a catalyst for public-private partnerships that marry performance with education, noting that Ghana\u2019s long-term football success depends on structured youth pathways as much as on senior results.<\/p>\n

The Mansour Group\u2019s wider footprint\u2014through businesses such as Mantrac (Caterpillar) and Mansour Autos\u2014adds scale to the commitment, with an estimated US$600m invested in Ghana over the past decade and hundreds of young engineers trained locally.<\/p>\n

RTD\u2019s expansion also reflects rising outcomes. The San Diego academy has been cited by industry leaders as among the best in North America, while the Cairo campus has increased opportunities for North African talent.<\/p>\n

With Ghana\u2019s new site next in line, Right to Dream is positioning its birthplace at the centre of a three-continent network of four academies and three professional clubs.<\/p>\n

For Essien, the stakes are personal. The former Chelsea and Real Madrid midfielder came through Ghana\u2019s local system without the structure RTD now offers.<\/p>\n

His view is that the new campus will multiply chances for the next generation to combine \u201cbooks and boots\u201d and keep doors open\u2014whether to a professional debut or a university scholarship.<\/p>\n

In practical terms, the build is planned to start in 2026, all current scholarships will be honoured, and staff will remain employed during the move. In strategic terms, the message is clear: Ghana\u2019s original RTD chapter is evolving into a larger, better-equipped home designed to produce footballers, scholars and leaders. As Essien put it, the project is \u201ca gift\u201d\u2014and one intended to keep giving for years to come.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"EssienMichael Essien has praised the Mansour Group\u2019s plan to build a new Right to Dream (RTD) Academy near Accra, describing it as a transformative moment for youth development in Ghana. The project\u2014set to break ground in early 2026\u2014will replace RTD\u2019s Old Akrade base with a state-of-the-art campus that combines elite football coaching with rigorous academics. [\u2026]<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[137,10717,10,9,10718,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-football","category-michael-essien","category-politics","category-popular","category-right-to-dream-academy","category-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=99050"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99050\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=99050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=99050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=99050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}