Eleven Men and a Witch Doctor
Why black magic remains one of football's most enduring—and controversial—subjects.
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Ahead of England’s final 2026 World Cup group stage game against Panama, British talk show sleaze Piers Morgan decided to interview a so-called “Ghanian witch doctor” and fetish priest who had placed a curse on the team’s star striker Harry Kane.
During the interview, the witch doctor—who goes by the name Nana Kwaku Bonsam, which roughly translates as “Devil of Wednesday” in the Twi language—claimed to have placed a spiritual curse on Kane to prevent him from scoring against Ghana. He even revealed a jar which he claimed contained over 25 snakes used in the ritual process for the match, which ultimately ended in a 0-0 draw.
Determined to clarify the status of the curse after the match, Morgan asked, “Can you just confirm that there is now no ongoing curse against Harry? He’s allowed to score now?”
Bonsam confirmed that Kane had been released from the curse and that he would perform admirably against Panama, “It’s not going to be like the way Ghana is…”
Kane went on to score in England’s comfortable 2-0 win against Panama, securing its place atop Group L and setting up a Round of 32 game against the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kane went on to score two more decisive goals in that game on Wednesday.
Bonsam is a well known fetish priest in Ghana, a man loved and feared for the spiritual powers he harnesses. He has 14 children (nine of which are adopted), and once ran a free elementary school and cattle farm from his estate. He makes regular appearances in Ghana’s media circuit, and even spent a year in New York to treat facial injuries he had received as a child during a gas explosion. He is renowned as a healer in his home country and even ran for parliamentary office in 2016, though was ultimately unsuccessful. The New York Times reported on his foray into politics in a piece titled “The Devil is Running for a Seat in Parliament.”
While fetish priests have historically preferred to work in secret, Bonsam has learned to utilize the modern media landscape to popularize traditional religions in much the same way that televangelists used television and radio to promote Christianity. Football has become another platform for Bonsam, whose curse on Kane has gone viral on social media, making him an unlikely character in the 2026 World Cup.
And though black magic may seen like an absurd topic for most, it is serious business in African football.
Accusations of witchcraft, juju, and voodoo are commonplace at the African Cup of Nations tournament, the continent’s premier football competition. Teams from both East and West Africa have been known to carry talismans, invoke prayers, and practice rituals ahead of important matches. This has often led to scandals at AFCON. During a match at the 2000 edition between Senegal and Nigeria, a former official of the Nigerian FA raced on to the pitch in the final 15 minutes of the game and seized a supposed magi charm that had been lying in the back of the Senegal net. Nigeria went on to score two late goals to win 2-1. The official was subsequently banned but his actions were believed to have helped the Nigerian team to victory.