The Ghana Football Association has released the full fixtures for the 2026/27 Ghana Premier League season, confirming that defending champions Medeama SC will open their title defence away at Dreams FC while Hearts of Oak welcome Berekum Chelsea to Accra on the opening weekend. The season kicks off on the weekend of September 4-7, 2026, and runs through to May 28-31, 2027, with 18 clubs battling across 34 match weeks.
Opening day fixtures
Matchday 1 throws up an intriguing mix of fixtures for the traditional powerhouses and the newcomers alike. Medeama SC, who lifted the trophy in dramatic fashion last season, begin their defence on the road against Dreams FC.
Hearts of Oak host Berekum Chelsea at their home ground in the capital as the Phobians look to kick-start a fresh push for silverware. Asante Kotoko, meanwhile, travel to face newly promoted Debibi United FC, who will be playing their first ever Ghana Premier League match in what promises to be a special occasion for the club.
Elsewhere on the opening weekend, another debutant, Port City FC, take on fellow promoted side AshantiGold ’04. Bibiani Gold Stars, last season’s runners-up in the title race, travel to Bechem United. Other fixtures on the card include Basake Holy Stars against Swedru All Blacks, Vision FC hosting Young Apostles, FC Samartex 1996 welcoming Karela United, and Heart of Lions taking on Aduana FC.
Title contenders taking shape
Medeama arrive as champions after a tense finish to the 2025/26 campaign. The Tarkwa-based side sealed the title with a match to spare, thumping Heart of Lions 5-2 at home behind braces from Kelvin Obeng and Derrick Fordjour and a goal from Prince Owusu. On the same day, Bibiani Gold Stars, who had been chasing back-to-back titles, lost 3-1 to Dreams FC, a result that ended their defence in all but mathematical terms.
That triumph was Medeama’s second league title and returned the trophy to Tarkwa after a three-year wait. It also extended a remarkable run for the Western Region, which has now produced four consecutive Ghana Premier League champions through different clubs: Medeama in 2022/23, FC Samartex 1996 in 2023/24, Bibiani Gold Stars in 2024/25, and Medeama again in 2025/26.
With the new season’s schedule now public, attention turns to whether Hearts of Oak or Asante Kotoko can break that Western Region stranglehold, or whether Gold Stars and Samartex can mount fresh title bids of their own. The traditional Accra-Kumasi rivalry between Kotoko and Hearts of Oak, popularly known as the Super Clash, is scheduled for Matchday 13 in early December 2026, with the return fixture set for the final stretch of the season around the end of April 2027.
Season format and key changes
The GFA has confirmed that the 2026/27 season will run without any officially scheduled midweek fixtures, a policy aimed at cutting down on travel demands for clubs and giving players more time to recover between matches. All 18 clubs will play a standard home-and-away round-robin format across the 34 match weeks, with the first half of the season completed before the reverse fixtures begin.
Three clubs have earned promotion into the top flight for the new campaign: Debibi United FC, who secured a historic maiden promotion, Port City FC, and AshantiGold ’04. All three will be looking to establish themselves in Ghana’s top division from the very first matchday.
What to watch for
Beyond the opening weekend, fans will be tracking how Medeama’s title defence holds up against the increased scrutiny that comes with being champions, and whether the newly promoted trio can avoid an immediate relegation fight. The Super Clash dates in December and April are already being circled by supporters on both sides of the Kotoko-Hearts of Oak rivalry as potential turning points in the title race.
With the fixtures now out and clubs building their preparations toward the September kickoff, the 2026/27 Ghana Premier League season is shaping up as one where the established order in Accra and Kumasi will be tested once again by the Western Region clubs that have dominated recent campaigns.