This study explores how elite athletes’ transferable skills can support economic development in Ghana’s oil industry. With the sector facing a growing skills crisis, the research identifies how competencies gained through high-performance sports—such as teamwork, communication, leadership, strategic planning, decision-making, negotiation, creativity, and emotional intelligence—can help address human-capital shortages in the downstream oil sector. By mapping skill overlap using a visual assessment method and surveying former elite football players now working across major oil-industry roles, the findings show strong alignment between sports-developed abilities and industry requirements. Leveraging these undervalued skills offers a practical pathway to strengthen workforce capacity and advance sustainable economic growth in Ghana’s energy sector.