Published: September 11, 2025
MONROVIA — Former Youth and Sports Minister D. Zeogar Wilson has admitted that the administration of ex-President George Weah failed to lay the groundwork for sustainable sports development in Liberia, saying the sector under his leadership did not meet expectations.
“We should have set the foundation for other governments to follow, but we did not do well to improve sports in the country,” Wilson said Wednesday on Intel Sports in Paynesville.
Wilson, who served from 2018 to 2024 in the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) government, said the Ministry of Youth and Sports was not given the priority it deserved to make meaningful impact. He urged President Joseph Boakai’s administration to treat sports development as a national pillar for youth empowerment and to invest strategically in infrastructure and leadership.
He specifically encouraged the government to draw on the expertise of Liberia Football Association President Mustapha Raji to help revitalize the sector. “I can’t sit here and criticize the current government from a sports perspective, because the same challenges we faced are the same ones they’re dealing with now,” Wilson added.
Setbacks Under CDC
During the Weah years, Liberia played several World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers outside Monrovia after FIFA banned the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex for failing to meet international standards. In 2022, Liberia’s under-17 team was disqualified from the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers for age fraud.
The national team also endured an eight-game winless streak under head coach Ansu Keita, which fueled fan protests at SKD Stadium after a 2-1 defeat to Malawi in November 2023.
Wilson’s tenure was further marred by labor unrest under the Temporary Employment for Community Youth project, where nearly 4,000 workers went unpaid for 14 months.
Pushback From Weah Supporters
Supporters of the former administration dismissed Wilson’s comments as unfair and politically motivated. A former senior official at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Wilson overlooked major investments made in sports facilities.
According to the official, renovations at the SKD Sports Complex received an initial $160,000 allocation that later rose to $519,000. The upgrades included bucket seats, dressing rooms, medical and media centers, doping rooms, and a VIP stand. An additional $700,000 was earmarked for a FIFA-approved artificial turf.
“Wilson also forgot to talk about the many sports parks Weah built across Montserrado to improve sports,” the official said. He further noted that while the football budget under Weah was $150,000, the Unity Party government cut it to $50,000.
“So Wilson did not see that we were close to going to our third AFCON finals under Weah when South Africa stopped us after beating us 2-1 at home,” the official said, accusing Wilson of lacking passion for the job and using the ministry to benefit his family.
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