It was a night of absolute bliss, glamour and class at the Calcio Trade Ball event by the football talent agency group ArthurLegacy when it held the 4th edition in Accra on Saturday.
The annual event by the leading African football agency company held at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City brought together some of the continent’s biggest names in football, government officials and the diplomatic and corporate communities.
This year’s event underscored the unique partnership between the ArthurLegacy brand and the Italian Embassy in Accra and how both parties have over the years worked to ensure seamless facilitation of special Ghana-Italy trade ties using football as a tool.
Speaking at this year’s event, the Italian Ambassador to Ghana, Daniela d’ Orlandi, said Italy’s place in Ghanaian football history is one that truly inspires and has laid a foundation that keeps yielding fruits.
The Italian government, she added, finds in ArthurLegacy a strategic partner that has over the years executed this flawlessly and looks forward to more of such.
She says trade relations between Italy and Ghana are made better by the works of entities such as ArthurLegacy and strongly recommends that others from the diplomatic community look their way.
Reechoing her sentiments, a longtime associate of ArthurLegacy Madam Ama Bawuah called on the corporate community to open its doors to the brand, suggesting the football economy is one every country needs to complement its growth.
“The opportunities football offers are endless. I have experienced it at first hand and I know that if we all come together to support the ArthurLegacy brand, we will be driving the needed economic growth we want to see.”
Founder of ArthurLegacy, Oliver Arthur said his organization will continue to invest in the game to give opportunities to young talents.
“What we have achieved and celebrated could not have been achieved without the support of almost everyone present in this room. Ours is not an easy task but it is one that we gladly perform. We will continue to pursue opportunities for the next generation of footballers as we transform lives.”
General Manager of ArthurLegacy, Kathleen Arthur reiterated the successes of the brand and how it carries with it the dreams of many families.
“What we do at ArthurLegacy is more than just football scouting, training, management and transfers. We carry the dreams of hundreds of people using the sport as a powerful life-changing tool for the players and the communities and families they come from. We have been consistent at it and we intend to go the full haul.”
Kathleen added that “because of what we do and do so well, the lives of these players and their families are shaped in ways unimaginable and for us, that is the bigger satisfaction we get.
“In the next 10 years, we want to still help make the dreams and aspirations of these footballers come to pass. We want to be the reason why some of these players never gave up in life. Ghana has a large pool of talents and ArthurLegacy is going to be ever-present in that ecosystem.”
This year’s Calcio Trade Ball (CTB) saw Black Stars captain Andre Dede Ayew win the topmost award CTB Order of the Star. Andre commended ArthurLegacy and the Italian Embassy for the initiative, calling on others to help provide the avenue for more football talents from Ghana.
Other winners include:
Sully Ali Muntari – CTB Lifetime Achievement Award
Franck Yannick Kessié – Serie A African Player of the Year
Edmund Addo – ArthurLegacy Player of the Year
Felix Afena-Gyan – CTB Most Promising Footballer
Alhaji Grunsah – Special Recognition (Football Development)
The Calcio Trade Ball
Started in 2016, it is held under the auspices of the Embassy of Italy in Ghana and ArthurLegacy. The event celebrates the contribution of Italy to the development of Ghana football and promotes Ghana-Italy cultural relations.
This year, as part of a series of events lined up for the Calcio Trade Ball, a Seminar and All-Star game featuring AC Milan star Franck Yannick Kessié were held.
ArthurLegacy
Founded in 2013 by Oliver Arthur, one of Ghana’s leading football agents, ArthurLegacy Sports provides end-to-end training and management of young gifted African football talents.
By organising tournaments and staging friendly matches, the Agency scouts the best and brightest footballers from the continent and secures lucrative deals and transfers for them to world-class football clubs across Europe.
Through these tournaments, the agency has successfully negotiated a number of transfer deals for notable players including Felix Afena-Gyan of AS Roma and Edmund Addo of Sheriff Tiraspol in Moldova.
As of July 2019, the agency has brokered over 50 direct and indirect deals for African football players from diverse backgrounds, ethnicity and culture.
In the last year alone, it has successfully worked on 10 deals, an impressive average for any football agency in Africa.