  We investigate the asymptotic symmetry group of the free SU(N)-Yang-Mills
theory using the Hamiltonian formalism. We closely follow the strategy of
Henneaux and Troessaert who successfully applied the Hamiltonian formalism to
the case of gravity and electrodynamics, thereby deriving the respective
asymptotic symmetry groups of these theories from clear-cut first principles.
These principles include the minimal assumptions that are necessary to ensure
the existence of Hamiltonian structures (phase space, symplectic form,
differentiable Hamiltonian) and, in case of Poincar\'e invariant theories, a
canonical action of the Poincar\'e group. In the first part of the paper we
show how these requirements can be met in the non-abelian SU(N)-Yang-Mills case
by imposing suitable fall-off and parity conditions on the fields. We observe
that these conditions admit neither non-trivial asymptotic symmetries nor
non-zero global charges. In the second part of the paper we discuss possible
gradual relaxations of these conditions by following the same strategy that
Henneaux and Troessaert had employed to remedy a similar situation in the
electromagnetic case. Contrary to our expectation and the findings of Henneaux
and Troessaert for the abelian case, there seems to be no relaxation that meets
the requirements of a Hamiltonian formalism and allows for non-trivial
asymptotic symmetries and charges. Non-trivial asymptotic symmetries and
charges are only possible if either the Poincar\'e group fails to act
canonically or if the formal expression for the symplectic form diverges, i.e.
the form does not exist. This seems to hint at a kind of colour-confinement
built into the classical Hamiltonian formulation of non-abelian gauge theories.
