Charles Kumi Gyamfi, popularly called C. K. Gyamfi was a Ghanaian footballer and coach, who as a player became the first African to play in Germany when he joined Fortuna Düsseldorf in 1960.
C. K. Gyamfi had his primary school education at the Accra Royal School in James Town.
He later became the first coach to lead the Ghana national football team to an Africa Cup of Nations victory.
Born Charles Kumi Gyamfi on December 29, 1929, Gyamfi enjoyed a celebrated playing career, starring as a prolific striker for traditional giants Ebusua Dwarfs, Asante Kotoko, Hearts of Oak, and the Ghana national team.
During his heyday in the 1950s, he was often hailed by the press as one of the most-complete footballers to emerge from Africa.
C. K. Gyamfi trained in Germany and Brazil, Gyamfi went on to become the first black coach of the Black Stars in 1962.
He coached Africa XI sides in the early 1970s and managed clubs in Somalia and Kenya to league titles in the 1980s.
Described by CAF as “a huge figure in Ghanaian and continental football folklore” and by FIFA as “one of the most successful coaches in African football”, Gyamfi won a joint-record hat trick of Africa Cup of Nations titles, leading Ghana to victory in 1963, 1965 and 1982.
His record as a three times consecutive winner of the African Nations Cup stood until Egypt’s Hassan Shehata equaled it.
C. K. Gyamfi was also the coach of the Ghana national football team during Ghana’s Olympic debut at the 1964 Summer Olympics.
After a few years of break, he returned to coach the Olympic team for the 1972 tournament.
He was a FIFA Technical Study Group member for the 1999 and 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship.
In January 2008 he publicly lamented the modern obsession of players with money rather than the love of the game.
C. K. Gyamfi died in September 2015.