For many hooligans, frustration over results often erupts into violence. When players and referees narrowly escape, the next targets are usually the visiting technical team and club officials.

One of Ghana’s most experienced football figures, Maxwell Konadu, knows this all too well.

Since 2009, Konadu has coached at both club and national levels, guiding Asante Kotoko to their 22nd league title in 2012, serving as assistant coach at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, and leading Ghana’s home-based side to WAFU glory in 2017.

But on November 19, 2023, during a Ghana Premier League match between Bofoakwa Tano and Nsoatreman, he faced one of the darkest moments of his career - an attack that left more than just physical wounds.

“It is the worst thing you can think of,” Konadu said in the JoyNews documentary Scars of Hooliganism.

“You leave your family back home to go and watch a match and never return - that’s the worst.”

Konadu believes the culture of violence must end if Ghana football is to move forward.

“We just don’t have to encourage that,” he added.

In Scars of Hooliganism hotline documentary, JoySports Haruna Mubarak explores the growing threat of fan violence in Ghana football, featuring stories of players, referees, supporters, and technical staff who have suffered its consequences.

Full Documentary below