Millions hang on Ghana's every move in Cup opener

Ghana's notoriously loyal fans filled Ohene Djan Stadium to the brim for the Black Stars' Cup of Nations-opening victory over Guinea. Abdelhak Senna/AFP/Getty Images

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ACCRA, Ghana -- "Oh!" That's what I found myself uttering again and again as the African Cup of Nations kicked off on Sunday.

The Ghanaians use this simple interjection to express surprise and worry -- though not necessarily in that order -- and there was so much of surprise and worry on my first day here, I had no choice but to take up the chorus.

However, by most accounts, opening day of the African Cup was a rousing success, a "dream start," as a radio jock put it after Ghana's 2-1 win over Guinea.

And although we journalists had several skirmishes with the woefully disorganized organizing committee (at one point, as I tried to get into the postgame press conference, one young riot policeman slashed his electric-shock baton inches from my chest -- "Oh!"), it would be hard to refute the optimism.

The opening game between Ghana and Guinea was sold out -- 40,000 of the luckiest (read: richest) Ghanaians held tickets, though many times that amount made their way to the stadium area. Years from now, all of them will claim they were at the game, sitting in the VIP section. Everyone wants to be a part of something like this, to touch it, to smell it, to feel they were involved.

It reminded me of a scene in Martin Luther King Jr.'s autobiography, when he wrote about attending Ghana's independence celebrations 50 years ago. MLK arrived in Accra on March 4, 1957, two days before the official day of independence, and later explained in his autobiography, "I wanted to be involved in it, to be a part of it, and notice the birth of this new nation with my own eyes."

In some ways, that's how I feel coming here, because hosting the Cup of Nations is like the rebirth of a nation. "I have never seen so many Ghana flags in my life," my friend and host Alex Acquaah told me as we drove toward the stadium. The streets around Independence Square looked like a flood of red, yellow and green. Flags adorned every car, and street venders swarmed at red lights, hawking T-shirts, noisemakers and big, yellow inflatable hands.

A flatbed truck carrying a full New Orleans-style brass band passed by with a motorcycle police escort. People danced in the streets, while helmeted riot police strutted around like high school bullies. A young guy on a green motorcycle did high-speed wheelies. Whistles and horns blared. At one traffic light, a rail-thin man painted from head to toe in a ghostly white stood in the middle lane like a statue, staring deadly at the drivers and holding up traffic for an eternity.

Inside Ohene Djan Stadium, the stands filled early. Everyone was festooned in the bright national colors, singing and chanting -- and feeling very confident about Ghana's chances this year. In the car, my new friend Ato had predicted a two-nil win for Ghana, with Chelsea star Michael Essien leading the way. "Essien will score one and somebody else will score the other," he said.

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