Published: August 12, 2026
MONROVIA — Liberia Football Association President Mustapha I. Raji has accepted responsibility for the administrative failure that shut Liberia out of the 2026-27 CAF interclub competitions and apologized to Watanga FC and Black Man Warrior FC.
Raji’s admission comes as an LFA investigative committee found serious administrative lapses within the association’s Secretariat, including a failure to act on repeated warnings from the Confederation of African Football ahead of the registration deadline.
“To the family of Watanga, family of Black Man Warriors, we are sorry. Nothing else to do,” Raji said in an interview with PUNCH FM over the weekend.
The LFA president said the failure cost Liberia’s two representatives a major continental opportunity and estimated their combined financial loss at about $200,000.
“I feel disappointed because our teams lost around $200,000. That is not small money to the economy of Liberia,” Raji said.
Although Raji said he was not directly involved in the Secretariat’s day-to-day communication with CAF, he accepted ultimate responsibility as president of the football association.
“I am not involved with those activities. It is directly under the scope of the secretary general. I don’t have access to the emails,” Raji said.
“But I, as president, take full responsibility. I am the president of the football association.”
CAF Warnings Ignored
The LFA’s three-member investigative committee found that CAF notified the association on June 19, 2026, of the procedures for registering clubs for the 2026-27 Champions League and Confederation Cup.
CAF gave clubs until July 25 to complete the required engagement process through its Competition Management System.
The LFA Competitions Manager forwarded the instructions to Watanga and Black Man Warrior on June 19.
The investigation found that Black Man Warrior acknowledged receipt, while Watanga initially said it had not received the communication. The committee, however, determined that the message had been received by Watanga but was not acknowledged.
The investigation found that CAF later sent a reminder on July 24, followed by a final warning on July 25, the deadline day. According to the report, CAF official Emad Shenouda offered the LFA a final opportunity to complete the process before the deadline expired.
The committee found that LFA Secretary General Emmett Crayton failed to act on the final warning.
By the time the LFA appealed to CAF on Aug. 3, the draw and list of participating clubs had already been finalized. CAF subsequently rejected the appeal.
Investigation Recommends Discipline
The investigation was launched Aug. 4 and chaired by LFA Third Vice President Jodie Seton, with Executive Committee member Ousman S. Tall serving as secretary and Executive Committee member Elvis H. Sirleaf as the third member.
After reviewing Secretariat communications, CAF regulations, and testimony from key stakeholders, the committee identified failures at multiple levels of the LFA administration.
The Competitions Manager was found at fault for failing to adequately follow up with the clubs on the crucial CAF CMS engagement process, despite successfully handling the club licensing component.
The committee also found that the secretary general failed to effectively supervise the process and respond to urgent CAF deadline warnings sent directly to his office.
The committee recommended disciplinary action against both the Competitions Manager and the secretary general under the LFA Human Resources Personnel Manual.
It also recommended that the LFA establish a comprehensive system for handling future CAF club engagements, with clearly assigned responsibilities, deadlines and monitoring procedures.
The recommendations will now go before the LFA Executive Committee for a final decision.
Raji said the association would take the necessary steps to prevent a repeat of the incident.
“We are going to look at the committee’s report and take the needed action as executive committee to ensure this is never repeated,” he said.
Watanga Demands Compensation
Watanga FC is demanding compensation and restorative measures if the investigation confirms that its exclusion resulted from an administrative failure for which the club was not responsible.
The club has proposed several remedies, including exceptional admission into the 2026-27 Champions League, if still administratively possible; qualification for the following Champions League season; an additional Champions League place for Liberia; reimbursement of competition-related expenses; and compensation for demonstrable financial, commercial and sporting losses.
Watanga acknowledged that the CAF draw has already taken place and that automatic qualification for a future competition is not expressly guaranteed under the regulations.
However, the club argues that CAF’s Interclub Organizing Committee has authority to consider exceptional remedies involving complaints, replacements, emergencies and unforeseen circumstances.
Watanga said it expects transparency, accountability and a remedy proportionate to the harm suffered.
The administrative failure means Liberia has no club representing the country in the 2026-27 CAF Champions League or Confederation Cup.
For Watanga and Black Man Warrior, the fallout is both financial and sporting. For the LFA, the controversy represents one of the most serious administrative crises of the current football administration.
Raji’s public apology and acceptance of responsibility have intensified calls for accountability within the LFA Secretariat as the Executive Committee prepares to decide on the investigative committee’s recommendations.
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