Who Is Nana Kwaku Bonsam? The Witch Doctor Linking Curses To Cristiano Ronaldo And Now Harry Kane

England's Group L clash with Ghana produced an unexpected subplot that had nothing to do with tactics. Before kickoff, Nana Kwaku Bonsam, Ghana's most talked-about traditional spiritualist, claimed publicly that he had placed a curse on Harry Kane to stop him scoring. England, who arrived with their captain in scoring form, left with a goalless draw and a missed close-range chance from Kane that social media wasted no time connecting to Bonsam's claim.

Who Nana Kwaku Bonsam Is

Bonsam, whose name translates to "Devil of Wednesday," runs three shrines in Accra and brands himself "The Great Authentic Man." According to his own website, he has lived in New York, Amsterdam, Berlin and parts of Italy, and has been profiled twice by The New York Times. He describes himself as an African Traditional Priest who has spent two decades helping people pursue their goals through the spiritual power of Kofi oo Kofi. He is also a flamboyant public figure known for driving a Cadillac, wearing Dolce & Gabbana tracksuits, and once standing for election to the Ghanaian parliament.

His international notoriety dates back to the 2014 World Cup, when he claimed credit for the knee injury that disrupted Cristiano Ronaldo before Portugal's group match against Ghana. "I said it four months ago that I will work on Cristiano Ronaldo seriously and rule him out of the World Cup, or at least prevent him from playing against Ghana, and the best thing I can do is to keep him out through injury," he said at the time. No credible evidence has ever linked his rituals to that injury or any other football outcome.

What He Said About Harry Kane Before and After the Ghana Match

Ahead of England's match, Bonsam told reporters he was "working on Harry Kane" and knew "what work I must do to stop him," insisting he intended no serious harm, only enough disruption to help Ghana on the day. After the 0-0 draw, with Kane quiet throughout, Bonsam posted a Facebook video appearing to perform ritual gestures and declaring a change of heart. "I am the most powerful spiritualist in the whole world now I am going to release Harry Kane so that his next match he can score a goal," he said, adding: "Harry, I will come and visit you, ok, we are brothers, I love you so much."

Kane sits one goal away from breaking Gary Lineker's England World Cup scoring record. Whether Bonsam's "release" works any better than his curse did remains, as it always has, a matter of football folklore rather than football science.