In recognition of his exquisite football he displayed at the FIFA U-17 Tournament, he was named the 1991 fifth best African Footballer of the Year. Lamptey's brilliance led an enterprising and unpredictable Ghana's U-20 team, known as the "Black Satellites" to win the African U-20 Cup of Nations and then lost the final of the 1993 FIFA World Youth Championship held in Australia to Brazil, who came from a goal down to win the trophy at the death, 2–1. He also scored in the match against Portugal, which Ghana won 2–0. In the Summer of 1992, young superstar Nii Lamptey led Ghana to win a Bronze medal at the Barcelona 1992 Summer Olympics football tournament. Ghana, who had the youngest team by far in the competition (the average age of the squad was 18.8 years), were surprise bronze medallists, becoming the first African nation to earn a medal. They did so in a 1–0 victory over yet another surprise, Australia. Lamptey thus led Ghana to success at any Youth International Tournament in which he played.