Joe Nana Adarkwa

Joe Nana Adarkwa is a Ghanaian football coach who has spent most of his career in the women's game. He is head coach of the Black Maidens, Ghana's under-17 women's national team, and in October 2026 he guided them into the quarter-finals of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Morocco.

Ampem Darkoa years

He coached Ampem Darkoa Ladies of Techiman for nine years and turned them into the strongest club in Ghana. Under him they won the Women's Premier League in 2022 and 2023, lifted the Women's FA Cup and the WAFU zonal title, and finished fourth at the 2023 CAF Women's Champions League in Côte d'Ivoire. He stepped away in December 2024, saying he needed a sabbatical, and in April 2025 he took charge of Epiphany Warriors.

National teams

He was an assistant with the Black Princesses, the under-20 side, before the Ghana Football Association made him Black Maidens head coach in early 2024 in place of Baba Nuhu. He won the WAFU B U-17 Girls' Cup with the team, and the GFA later kept him in the job for the 2026 World Cup cycle, with Basiru-Deen Sumani and Edna Quagraine as assistants.

2026 World Cup run

On 28 October 2026 the Black Maidens beat Argentina 5-4 on penalties in the round of 16 after a 1-1 draw. Ghana had led through Jessica Appiah, lost Hajara Adam to a red card with 13 minutes left and conceded a late equaliser before Appiah scored the winning kick in the shootout. Adarkwa credited his players' tactical discipline and said afterwards: "We have to qualify to the semi-finals."