61 Facts About Harrison Afful

Harrison Afful was born on 24 July 1986 and is a Ghanaian former footballer who played as a fullback.

Harrison Afful appeared previously for Feyenoord Academy, Esperance de Tunis, and Columbus Crew and spent time on loan at Asante Kotoko.

Harrison Afful played the next six seasons with Tunis, appearing for the club more than 180 times.

At the international level, Harrison Afful made his Ghanaian debut at the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, helping Ghana to a third-place finish at that tournament.

Harrison Afful appeared for the Black Stars at four more AFCON tournaments, finishing as runners-up in 2010 and 2015.

Harrison Afful was called up to Ghana's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, appearing twice during the tournament.

Harrison Afful captained his nation for the first time in a friendly against Congo on 1 September 2015.

Harrison Afful used to watch the Ghana national team on television before becoming a professional footballer.

Harrison Afful joined the Feyenoord Academy after being discovered as a youth by Sam Arday.

Harrison Afful rose through the youth ranks to the first team, appearing 148 times and scoring 11 goals in all competitions for the academy.

Harrison Afful underwent a trial with Feyenoord, the parent club of the academy, in 2008.

Harrison Afful had been bought by Kotoko the year before, and his contract allowed Asante Kotoko to choose one player to bring in on loan from the academy.

Harrison Afful impressed Kotoko head coach Bashir Hayford with his performance during a 10-minute cameo in a friendly match, allowing him to break into the first team after initially appearing to be outside Hayford's plans.

Harrison Afful finished his time on loan with five goals from 68 appearances in all competitions.

On 25 August 2009, Harrison Afful officially signed a three-year contract with Tunisian club Esperance de Tunis.

Harrison Afful had trained with the club prior to the announcement and had scored a goal in a friendly match, helping convince Tunis to complete the signing.

Harrison Afful scored his first two goals for the club in a three-match span in the spring of 2010, tallying against CA Bizertin on 28 April and ES Hammam-Sousse on 15 May He finished the season with two goals from 23 appearances in all competitions as Tunis claimed their second consecutive Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 title.

Harrison Afful appeared 17 times without a goal as the Blood and Gold claimed their third consecutive league title, but did start in the Tunisian Cup final as Tunis defeated Etoile du Sahel.

Harrison Afful made his debut in the tournament on 16 July 2010, appearing in Group A play against ES Setif.

Harrison Afful went on to appear in every game of the tournament from the group stage on, helping lead EST to the 2010 CAF Champions League Final against TP Mazembe.

Just as in the prior season, Harrison Afful played sparingly in the CLP-1: he appeared in 16 league matches without scoring as Tunis rolled to a fourth consecutive league crown.

In 2011 CAF Champions League play, Harrison Afful again played a headlining role as Tunis advanced to the continental final for the second consecutive year.

Harrison Afful came off the bench in the first leg of the 2011 CAF Champions League Final, replacing Wajdi Bouazzi in the 90th minute of a draw with Wydad Casablanca.

Harrison Afful appeared off the bench in the quarterfinals against Al Sadd and started the fifth place match against Monterrey.

Harrison Afful played 31 times in all competitions, scoring once, during the course of the season.

Harrison Afful again played a vital role for EST in the Champions League, helping the Blood and Gold advance to their third consecutive final to take on Al Ahly.

Harrison Afful appeared 28 times in all competitions on the campaign, scoring three goals.

Harrison Afful added ten more appearances in the 2013 CAF Champions League, but EST were defeated by Orlando Pirates in the semifinals and denied a fourth consecutive trip to the final.

Harrison Afful then began the 2014 CAF Champions League by scoring in both the first and second qualifying rounds, helping Tunis advance over Gor Mahia and Real Bamako, respectively.

Harrison Afful continued to attract interest after the World Cup, with a reported 13 European clubs battling for his signature; however, it was Al Wahda, of the United Arab Emirates, who reportedly won the race for his services.

Harrison Afful underwent a medical, but the club canceled the deal after ES Tunis broke off communication and he thus returned to Tunisia.

Harrison Afful filed a case with FIFA over the issue, and in May 2016 the organization sided with Afful in the case.

Harrison Afful was recommended to the club by ex-Ghanaian international Joe Addo, who had played alongside Crew head coach Gregg Berhalter in the 1990s.

Harrison Afful missed several matches while on international duty but returned to start every game in Crew SC's run to MLS Cup 2015.

Harrison Afful was rumored to be leaving Columbus ahead of the 2016 season, with reports from his native Ghana claiming that he would be joining Mersin Idman Yurdu when his contract expired at the end of 2015.

Harrison Afful finished the season with three goals and three assists from 30 appearances.

Harrison Afful finished the season with one goal from 29 appearances and again had his contract option picked up by Crew SC.

Harrison Afful bounced back in 2018 with two goals and six assists from 35 total appearances.

Harrison Afful added an assist in the knockout round of the 2018 MLS Cup Playoffs, helping Columbus to advance on penalties over DC United.

Harrison Afful's contract expired following the season, but the Crew announced that the sides were still in negotiations; nine days later, they agreed a deal for Afful to return to the club on a new contract.

Harrison Afful scored one goal in 26 total appearances on the season and won his first trophy since arriving in Columbus in 2015.

In what turned out to be his final season with the Crew, Harrison Afful made 30 appearances in all competitions in 2021.

Harrison Afful missed the opening match of the season, a CONCACAF Champions League fixture against Real Esteli, after what was reported to be a stint in COVID-19 protocol, but returned to play against the same team a week later.

Harrison Afful came off the bench in the 2021 Campeones Cup, helping the Crew to defeat Cruz Azul and claim their second trophy during his time at the club.

Harrison Afful made 188 appearances and scored seven goals across all competitions during his seven seasons with the Crew.

Harrison Afful inked a one-year deal with a club option for a further season.

Harrison Afful re-signed with Charlotte ahead of the 2023 season.

On 16 April 2024, Harrison Afful appeared for National Independent Soccer Association side Michigan Stars FC in a Lamar Hunt US Open Cup fixture against Detroit City FC.

Harrison Afful debuted in the Ghanaian international setup at the under-20 level, appearing six times and scoring a goal for the side.

Harrison Afful struggled to lock down a place on the team outside 2006 and later said that "my unsuccessful attempts at the junior national teams [were] not as a result of poor performance".

Harrison Afful made his debut for the senior national team at the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations.

Harrison Afful had not been named in the 40-man preliminary squad but was called up to the final squad by coach Claude Le Roy.

Harrison Afful was then called up to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, and although Ghana made a run to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations Final he did not make an appearance at the tournament.

Harrison Afful was left off Ghana's squad for the 2010 World Cup, failing to even crack the Black Stars' preliminary roster.

Harrison Afful was recalled to the Black Stars in June 2012, as James Kwesi Appiah brought him in for 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Zambia.

On 12 May 2014, Harrison Afful was named in Ghana's 30-man preliminary squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Harrison Afful appeared in every match at the tournament, helping the Black Stars reach the final against Ivory Coast.

Harrison Afful was back in an AFCON squad two years later, earning a place in the Ghanaian team for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.

Harrison Afful played every minute in the tournament, helping the Black Stars to a fourth-place finish after falling to Burkina Faso in the third place match.

Harrison Afful appeared six times in qualifying, including four matches in the third round as Ghana placed third in their group and missed out on the World Cup for the first time since 2002.

Harrison Afful was not named to Ghana's roster for the tournament as he was dealing with an injury suffered at the club level.