Adebayor Launched GhanaSoccernet in His London Home — Sannie Daara Reveals Little-Known Origin Story

Founder of GhanaSoccernet, Ibrahim Sannie Daara, has revealed that former Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor officially launched the popular football website in London in 2007, long before it grew into one of Africa’s leading sports news platforms.

Speaking on Kafui Dey’s interview show, Sannie Daara recounted how the website was born from a small bedroom in London while he was working for the BBC.

According to him, the idea emerged after he realized there were many Ghana football stories that could not be published on the BBC’s platforms despite being relevant to local audiences.

“I started GhanaSoccernet from my small flat in London in late 2007, just before Ghana hosted the Africa Cup of Nations,” he said.

At the time, Sannie Daara was working as both a presenter and editor on the BBC African football website.

“There were too many news items. Apart from being a presenter, I was also an editor on the BBC African football website, so I could see that a lot of news items couldn’t go on the BBC website but were relevant for the Ghanaian audience,” he explained.

The veteran journalist said he recruited a number of young aspiring sports writers and began building the platform after work each day.

“I started it in my bedroom in London. Anytime I closed from work, I would go home, turn on the laptop and work until 2 or 3 a.m. I did that persistently,” he said.

Sannie Daara disclosed that one of African football’s biggest stars at the time, former Arsenal forward Emmanuel Adebayor, played a key role in the website’s launch.

“It was launched by Emmanuel Adebayor,” he revealed.

“He invited me to his house and said he would launch the website for me, and he launched it in his house.”

According to Sannie Daara, the launch took place on December 24, 2007, at Adebayor’s apartment in Swiss Cottage, London.

“I remember clearly it was on the 24th of December 2007 in his flat in Swiss Cottage in London,” he said.

The GhanaSoccernet founder fondly recalled the occasion, including a meal prepared by Adebayor’s then-girlfriend before the website officially went live.

Despite its humble beginnings, the platform has grown into a global sports media brand with operations spanning several countries.

Today, Sannie Daara says the organization runs 11 websites and employs more than 220 people across Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, Russia and Australia.

The former BBC journalist also highlighted the role GhanaSoccernet has played in developing sports media talent, noting that several prominent Ghanaian journalists and football administrators passed through the platform.

“A lot of people came through the system and a lot of people have used the website to achieve greatness,” he said.

Reflecting on the platform’s growth, Sannie Daara described its rise from a bedroom startup to an internationally recognized sports website as something he never imagined.

“It has turned out to be something that I never imagined,” he said.

“Today, it’s among the top sports news websites in the world.”

He added that the success of the venture was driven partly by a desire to mentor young journalists, just as others had helped him during his own career.

“A lot of people held my hands, and I felt that I also had to give back what I had learned and help others,” Sannie Daara said.