How the World Cup Fan Fest brought together the Ghanaian community in Kansas City

Two shades of yellow, one closer to a ripe lemon, the other closer to gold, filled Kansas City’s FIFA World Cup Fan Fest as Ghana and Colombia battled for a spot in the Round of 16 on Friday night.

For 90 minutes, supporters waved flags, drummed, danced, and sang, but by the end of the evening the soccer scoreline mattered far less than what unfolded in the crowd.

Colombia left Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium with a 1-0 victory after forward John Arias buried a 14th-minute shot into the right side of the net.

Ghana’s tournament hopes came to an end, but for many of the thousands gathered in KC, the evening was never defined by who advanced.

Instead, it became a celebration of community.

For many Ghanaian supporters, the KC Fan Fest provided something they rarely experience in the Midwest: the chance to watch their national team surrounded by fellow Ghanaians.

Some traveled hundreds of miles. Others met members of the local Ghanaian community for the first time.

“It feels like a privilege,” Ghanaian American Muntaka Ishaa said. “It feels like back home. For the first time ever, the game has come to us.”

Long before kickoff, groups gathered waving Ghanaian flags, singing traditional songs and dancing together. Strangers greeted one another like old friends, united by a shared homeland and love of soccer.

Frank Banascoe, a native of Ghana and graduate student at Iowa State, made the trip to Kansas City with more than 20 classmates. Together, they joined supporters from across the Midwest, turning the fan zone into something that felt less like a watch party and more like a reunion.

“It’s so awesome to be able to have this space to meet up and watch our country play in Kansas City,” Banascoe said. “We’ve come from Iowa and Minnesota to be able to meet here.”

For Banascoe, who has lived in the United States for about a year and a half, Kansas City became the latest stop in a journey across the country. While he said larger cities, such as New York and Chicago, offered more attractions, he admired Kansas City’s walkability and its welcoming atmosphere.

That atmosphere extended well beyond one fan base, however.

During the match, Colombian supporters celebrated each attacking chance while Ghanaian fans answered with calls of their own. When the final whistle blew, applause echoed from both sides.

Fans posed for photos together, exchanged handshakes and congratulated one another before returning to the music that had filled the festival throughout the evening.

Aminu Sulaiman, a Ghanaian American who has lived in Kansas City since 2016, said the World Cup has transformed the city by creating moments where people from every background can gather around a shared passion.

“This World Cup is influencing a lot of Americans,” Sulaiman said. “I think soccer is going to take over eventually. It has shattered the country’s political ideology. I have never seen people get along this much.

“That’s what soccer does.”

For one night, Kansas City wasn’t divided by the colors on supporters’ jerseys or the result on the scoreboard. It became a place where different cultures, languages and communities found some common ground.

Colombia may have earned the victory, but everyone who gathered at Fan Fest seemed to leave with something to celebrate: the game’s unique ability to bring people together.