Tony Yeboah from Evangelism to Football

From Evangelism to footballer-Tony Yeboah

• He is a Ghanaian retired professional footballer
• He played as a striker
• He won the Bundesliga golden boot twice

Anthony Yeboah is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as a striker and his current net worth is about $5 million having garnered it from his professional career and also from his businesses as he is an entrepreneur.

He is considered one of the most prolific and prominent goal scorers in Ghanaian and African football history and Bundesliga when he played for Eintracht Frankfurt.

Tony Yeboah Biography

Personal Life

Tony was born on June 6 1966 in Kumasi, Ghana to his parents Mike Kofi Yeboah who was a professional football player back in the day.

Just like a journey of 1000 miles begins with a step, Yeboah’s journey to the apex of football started in the Ashanti region in a club known as Kotoko Babies.

According to his parents, they wanted their son to become an evangelist since they were doing ministry work, to the extent of threatening him and persuading him to leave football for that. However, he gave a damn ear.

On joining Leeds United, his parents went the extra mile of accusing the owner of kidnapping and were put in prison for a day by the police to get their son back. Football was totally against their desire for him to become a preacher and were determined to use all means to put him off.

Despite the arrest, Naami the owner of the club saw potential in the young talent and he continued to have him in his team. Unfortunately, Yeboah’s elder brother was also a team member in the club and this could have been the reason the parents wanted one of their own to be evangelical.

Yeboah’s rise to stardom

Yeboah’s brother was a team member at Kotoko and on a specific day, he missed, his younger brother filling in the gap. After a few days of training with the club, he was ready to play his first match performing so well and this was his success key.

He made his professional debut for Okwamu United and this earned him a move to Europe, where he joined German side FC Saarbrucken.

The Germans made a promise to Naami, Yeboah’s coach that since he produced talent and handed him over to them, they would support his team by donating him a bus which they did but unfortunately, it passed through the player’s parents who never handed it over to him.

It was a dull moment for the coach to never get his gift after nurturing the talent and undergoing challenges like arrests in the name of mentorship.

Tony is married and has two children.

Career

The ex-player joined a youth team in Kumasi his hometown before he was poached by a German club FC Saarbrucken, becoming the first black player to appear in the Bundesliga and was moved to Eintracht Frankfurt.

Tony and his Kotoko coach Naami. Photo/Pulse Ghana

His new move was not warmly welcomed as he faced racism from fans who even called him a monkey but established himself as a deadly striker who became the love of many.

From Eintracht Frankfurt, he joined Leeds United for a fee of $4.3 million where he appeared in the FA Premier League qualifying for the UEFA Cup.

At Leeds, he scored several memorable goals and was even named a Player Of The Year in his second season. He scored three hat-tricks for the club making him the third foreign player to score that for the club.

Tony Yeboah at Leeds. Photo/Yorkshire Evening Post

Later on, he joined the German club Hamburger SV scoring 28 goals and joined Al Ittihad playing under Australian coach Josef Hickerberger.

Yeboah has played a key role for his country in the football section. He was a member of Ghana’s national team for over a decade representing his country at three Africa Cup of Nations in the 90s.

He scored 29 goals in 59 appearances for Ghana, the fourth-highest goal-scoring total in the nation’s history. Other players who have also kept history in scoring numerous goals are Asamoah Gyan, Edward Acquah and Kwasi Owusu.

A decade ago, Tony was appointed as the chairman of Ghana Premier League club Berekum Chelsea.

Where is Yeboah after retirement?

Along with his cousin former Mainz player Michael Osei, the duo run an international sports agency known as Anthony Yeboah Sports Promotion. The ex-player has also invested in the hospitality industry and owns several hotels in Accra.