20/08/2025
Sport Journalist T Kla Wesley writes 🚨 ✍️
It’s about time the County Meet goes beyond just being a national unity tournament and starts making a real impact in sports development in Liberia.
Let’s not shy away from the truth - the County Meet generates millions of dollars every year from gate receipts, sponsorships, and other income streams. Yet, for over five decades, the only impact we have consistently seen is the yearly slogan 'Sports Through Unity.'
Unity is important, yes. That theme has served its purpose, and it’s time to face the reality of sports development.
Imagine if, over the past 50 years, funds from the County Meet were directed toward upgrading sports facilities in each county. By now, we wouldn’t have to wait on FIFA Forward funds through the LFA before a single mini-stadium or training facility gets built. The government could have already laid down solid infrastructure across Liberia using money from its biggest annual sporting event.
But instead, what do we see?
No protections for players who risk their careers to represent their counties, no protections for clubs who lose their key players to injuries during the tournament, and no insurance program or fallback plan to support players who get injured.
Counties don’t sign inactive footballers; they go for the best-performing players in the league. But what happens when those players get injured?
Take the case of Vamba Dorley, a very young and promising defender, who got a broken leg while playing for Bomi. Today, he’s crying for help on Facebook to fix an injury he sustained while playing in the county meet for Bomi. Bomi has moved on. The government has moved on. The County Meet has moved on. Meanwhile, his career is at risk of ending before it even takes off. That should never be happening when the County Meet is making millions every year.
Let’s learn from FIFA. Yes, FIFA generates billions, but the principle is the same. Because they generate revenue from competitions, they have an insurance program that provides financial support to clubs when their players get injured while on international duty. That’s the kind of model we need to adopt here.
And please, spare me the saying 'You can’t compare FIFA to government.' Why not? Both organize competitions. Both rely on players who are actively playing for clubs. Both generate revenue from those competitions. So why can’t the government, through the County Meet, also establish protections and development programs for players, clubs, and facilities?
Liberia deserves better. The County Meet should no longer just be about slogans. It should be about investing in facilities across counties, protecting players and clubs, and building systems that outlive slogans.
We’ve done 'Sports Through Unity' for more than 50 years. Now it’s time to do 'Sports for Development and Protection.'
We really need to do better!
