George Weah

George Manneh Oppong Weah (born 1 October 1966) is a Liberian politician and former professional footballer who served as the 25th president of Liberia from 2018 to 2024. Before his election for the presidency, Weah served as senator from Montserrado County. He played as a striker in his prolific 18-year professional football career which ended in 2003. Weah is the first African former professional footballer to become a head of state, and the only African Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year winner in history, winning both awards in 1995. He won the African Footballer of the Year three times and is considered the best African striker/forward and one of the greatest strikers ever.

After beginning his career in his native Liberia, Weah spent 14 years playing for clubs in France, Italy, and England. Arsène Wenger brought him to Europe, signing him for Monaco in 1988. Weah moved to Paris Saint-Germain in 1992 where they won Division 1 in 1994 and became the top scorer of the 1994–95 UEFA Champions League. He signed for AC Milan in 1995 where he spent four successful seasons, winning the Serie A twice. Later in his career, he joined the Premier League having spells at Chelsea and Manchester City, winning the FA Cup with Chelsea, before returning to France to play for Marseille in 2001. He ended his career with Al Jazira in 2003. FourFourTwo named Weah one of the best players never to win the UEFA Champions League.

Weah represented Liberia at the international level, winning 75 caps, scoring 18 goals for his country, and playing at the African Cup of Nations on two occasions. He also played in a friendly in 2018, where his number 14 jersey was retired. Regarded as one of the best players never to have played at the FIFA World Cup, Scott Murray in The Guardian refers to Weah as "hamstrung by hailing from a global minnow".

Widely regarded as one of the greatest African players of all time, Weah was named FIFA World Player of the Year and won the Ballon d'Or in 1995, becoming the first and only player to win these awards while representing an African country internationally. In 1989 and 1995, he was also named the African Footballer of the Year winning the official award twice, and in 1996, he was named African Player of the Century. Known for his acceleration, speed, and dribbling ability, in addition to his goal-scoring, Weah was described by FIFA as "the precursor of the multi-functional strikers of today". In 2004, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.

Weah became involved in politics in Liberia following his retirement from football. He formed the Congress for Democratic Change and ran unsuccessfully for president in the 2005 election, losing to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in the second round of voting. In the 2011 election, he ran unsuccessfully for vice president alongside Winston Tubman. Weah was subsequently elected to the Senate of Liberia for Montserrado County in the 2014 election. Weah was elected President of Liberia in the 2017 election, defeating the incumbent vice president Joseph Boakai, and was sworn in on 22 January 2018. Weah was defeated in a rematch with Boakai in the 2023 election.

Early life and education George Manneh Oppong Weah was born on 1 October 1966 in Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia, and was raised in Clara Town, a slum in the city. His father, William T. Weah Sr., was a mechanic was a merchant. He attended middle school at Muslim Congress and high school at Wells Hairston High School and reportedly dropped out in his final year of studies.

Football career Club career Early career in Liberia, Cameroon, Monaco and France Weah began to play football for Young Survivors, a club based in Clara Town, in 1981 at the age of 15. Jason Burke, writing for The Observer, described how Weah scored "two spectacular goals" on his debut, "one hit from such a tight angle that it went in-off having struck both posts". In his three years with Young Survivors, the club earned two promotions, from the fourth level of football in Liberia to the second. was the league's top scorer, and was named as the league's player of the season. Before his football career allowed him to move abroad, Weah worked for the Liberia Telecommunications Corporation as a switchboard operator. Weah signed for Monaco 1988 for a transfer fee of £12,000, Weah has credited Wenger as an important influence on his career. During his time with Monaco, Weah was named the African Footballer of the Year for the first time in 1989. He helped Monaco reach the final of the 1991–92 European Cup Winners' Cup, scoring four goals in nine cup appearances.

Weah subsequently played for Paris Saint-Germain (1992–1995), with whom he won the Coupe de France in 1993 and 1995, Division 1 in 1994, and the Coupe de la Ligue in 1995 during a highly prolific and successful period; he also became the top scorer of the 1994–95 UEFA Champions League, with seven goals, after reaching the semi-finals with the club, one of which was a skillful individual "wonder-goal" against Bayern Munich in the group stage, on 23 November 1994. During his time at the club, he also managed to reach the semi-finals of the 1992–93 UEFA Cup, and the semi-finals of the 1993–94 European Cup Winners' Cup; in total, he scored 16 goals in 25 European games. Weah finished by rifling the ball into the bottom left corner before an exuberant goal celebration.

Due to his performances with both Paris Saint-Germain and Milan, in 1995 Weah was the recipient of several individual awards: he won the Ballon d'Or, the Onze d'Or, and was named FIFA World Player of the Year, becoming the first and, currently, only African player (by FIFA nationality) to win these awards, and second African-born player to do so after Eusébio. Weah dedicated his FIFA World Player of the Year victory to his former manager, Arsène Wenger, stating that it was thanks to him that he was able to develop into a world-class player. That year, Weah also won the African Player of the Year Award for the third time in his career, and was named to the Onze de Onze by the French football magazine Onze Mondial. The incident led to Costa undergoing facial surgery and he was subsequently sidelined for three weeks. Despite the incident, Weah still received the FIFA Fair Play Award in 1996.

Later career Weah signed for English Premier League club Chelsea on loan from Milan on 11 January 2000, in a deal which would keep him with the West London club until the end of the 1999–2000 season. Although past his prime, Weah's time in England was deemed a success, especially at Chelsea where he instantly endeared himself to their fans by scoring the winner against rivals Tottenham Hotspur on his debut, and scored further league goals against Wimbledon and Liverpool. He also scored twice in Chelsea's victorious 1999–2000 FA Cup netting crucial goals against Leicester City and Gillingham. This led to him starting in the final, which Chelsea won 1–0.

Chelsea manager Gianluca Vialli did not make Weah's move permanent, and, on 1 August 2000, he officially left Milan, and signed for newly promoted Premier League side Manchester City on a free transfer on a two-year contract worth £30,000 a week, declining the offer of a £1 million pay-off from Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi. He played 11 games in all competitions for City, scoring four times, before leaving on 16 October 2000 after becoming dissatisfied with manager Joe Royle for selecting him as a substitute too frequently; he had only played the full 90 minutes in three of his 11 games for the Maine Road club. At City, he scored once in the league against Liverpool (as he did at Chelsea), and three times against Gillingham (again as he had at Chelsea), this time in the League Cup; once in the first leg and twice in the second.

Following his time in England, Weah returned to France and had a spell at Marseille, where he remained until May 2001. He later played with Al Jazira in the UAE Football League, where he remained until his retirement as a player in 2003, at age 37.

International career Since making his debut for the Liberia national team against Burkina Faso on 23 February 1986, Weah played 75 games, scoring 18 goals.

One of the greatest African players of all time, George Weah was, like his namesake George Best before him, hamstrung in World Cup terms by hailing from a global minnow.|Scott Murray writing for The Guardian on Weah's "stand-alone effort" to get his nation to a World Cup.

Player profile Style of play During his prime in the 1990s, Weah was regarded as one of the best strikers in the world. He was lauded for his speed, work rate, stamina, and attacking instincts, as well as his physical and athletic attributes, which he combined with his finishing, technical ability, and creativity. A fast, powerful, physically strong player, with an eye for goal, many observers agree that he successfully filled the void left in the Milan attack by club great Marco van Basten. In addition to his pace, acceleration, dribbling skills, and goalscoring ability, as a multi-functional forward Weah was also a team player who was capable of creating chances and assisting goals for teammates. Along with Ronaldo and Romário, Weah was viewed as a modern, new style of striker in the 1990s who would also operate outside the penalty area and run with the ball towards goal, at a time when strikers primarily operated inside the penalty area where they would receive the ball from teammates. Among the next generation of strikers who were inspired, Thierry Henry states, "George Weah, Romário, and Ronaldo changed the game for me. It was the first time as a striker I saw players that could score on their own. Pick the ball up anywhere and score. Before as a number nine, people would say ' Stay within the line of the box, don't move too much, don't go to the wings, don't drop, stay.' Then I saw George Weah. And then I saw Ronaldo. And I saw Romário differently before those two. And it was like 'hang on a minute, someone has lied to me'."

One such goal that exemplified this ability was against Verona in 1995 where he received the ball in the edge of his penalty box and ran the length of the field. Weah is often hailed as one of the greatest African footballers of all time, being named African Player of the Century in 1996, In 2013, Milan great Franco Baresi named Weah in the greatest XI he has ever played with. FourFourTwo magazine named Weah one of the best players never to win the UEFA Champions League. A number of publications, including Scott Murray of The Guardian and Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times, in addition to FIFA, consider him to be one of the greatest players never to feature at the World Cup. During his playing career Weah was sponsored by sportswear company Diadora, and he became famous for his red Diadora boots while playing for AC Milan.

Career statistics Club

International

Scores and results list Liberia's goal tally first, score column indicates score, where known, after each Weah goal

Honors Mighty Barrolle Liberian Premier League: 1986 Liberian FA Cup: 1986 Coupe de France: 1992–93, 1994–95

Liberia West African Nations Cup runner-up: 1987

Individual African Footballer of the Year: 1989, 1995 World XI: 1991, 1996 (Reserve), 1997, 1998 Division 1 Foreign Player of the Year: 1990–91 UEFA Champions League top scorer: 1994–95 BBC African Footballer of the Year: 1995 Onze d'Or: 1995 Ballon d'Or: 1995 RSSSF Player of the Year: 1995 El País King of European Soccer: 1995 FIFA World Player of the Year: 1995 ESM Team of the Year: 1995–96 Onze d'Argent: 1996 FIFA World Player of the Year – Silver award: 1996 IFFHS African Player of the Century: 1999 World Soccer's 100 Greatest Footballers of All Time: 1999 Placar'''s 100 Stars of the Century: 1999 Arthur Ashe Courage Award 2004 Golden Foot Legends Award: 2005 AC Milan Hall of Fame IFFHS Legends World Hall of Fame of Soccer France Football Légendes Africaines Top-30: 2019 IFFHS All-time Africa Men's Dream Team: 2021

Humanitarianism Weah is a devoted humanitarian for his war-torn country. During his playing career he became a UN Goodwill Ambassador. a role which he has suspended in his political career. Off the football pitch, he stood out throughout his career for his initiatives to fight against racism in the game.

Football and children Weah has tried to use football as a way to bring happiness and promote education for children in Liberia. In 1998, Weah launched a CD called Lively Up Africa'' featuring the singer Frisbie Omo Isibor and eight other African football stars. The proceeds from this CD went to children's programs in the countries of origin of the athletes involved. Weah was also actively involved with youth programs in a Liberian enclave on Staten Island, New York, when he resided there for a time.

Football academies The Diya Group chairman and Indian entrepreneur Nirav Tripathi announced a multimillion-dollar partnership with Weah in 2016, whereby global football academies would be established to help assist youth in both impoverished and emerging nations.

The motivation for the academies is cited as a shared experience between both Tripathi and Weah in how sport can transform lives in their nations of India and Liberia, which both still suffer from severe poverty.

Weah obtained a plurality of votes in the first round of voting on 11 October, garnering 28.3% of the vote. This qualified him to compete in a run-off election against Sirleaf, the second placed candidate. However, he lost the run-off to Sirleaf on 8 November, garnering only 40.6% to 59.4% for Sirleaf. Weah alleged that the election had been rigged through voter intimidation and ballot tampering, and many of his supporters protested the results in the streets of Monrovia. However, after assurances that the vote was fair, several prominent African leaders called on Weah's supporters to accept the result with grace and dignity, and Sirleaf became president. The African Union had characterised the election as "peaceful, transparent, and fair".

Weah's lack of education became a campaign issue. He has been highly critical of those who say he is not fit to govern: "With all their education and experience, they have governed this nation for hundreds of years. They have never done anything for the nation." He initially claimed to have a BA degree in sport management from Parkwood University in London; however, this is an unaccredited diploma mill, which awards certificates without requiring study. Weah then pursued a degree in business administration at DeVry University in Miami.

2009–2016 Weah also remained active in Liberian politics, returning from the United States in 2009 to successfully campaign for the Congress for Democratic Change candidate in the Montserrado County senatorial by-election. Some analysts saw these moves as preparation for a repeat run for the presidency in 2011, and Weah did indeed later announce his intention to challenge Sirleaf in the 2011 election. After a series of failed alliances with other opposition parties, the Congress for Democratic Change chose Weah as its 2011 vice presidential candidate, running with presidential candidate Winston Tubman. The Tubman/ Weah ticket managed to capture 32.7% of the vote in the first round with Sirleaf getting 43.9% of the vote. As neither had a majority the election, following the two-round system, proceeded to the next round. However, in the second round Sirleaf was re-elected, with the Tubman / Weah ticket receiving only 9.3% of the vote.

In 2014, he ran for election to the Senate of Liberia as a Congress for Democratic Change candidate in Montserrado County. He was elected to the Liberian Senate on 20 December 2014. Weah defeated Robert Sirleaf, the son of President Sirleaf, becoming the first Liberian international athlete elected to represent a county in the legislature. He won a landslide victory, receiving 99,226 votes, which represented 78.0% of the total votes from the 141 polling centers, while Sirleaf, his closest rival received 13,692 votes, which is nearly 11% in the election marred only by a low turnout. Following his election, Weah only occasionally attended sessions of the Senate and did not introduce or sponsor any legislation.

2016 presidential bid In April 2016, Weah announced his intention to run for President of Liberia in the 2017 election, standing for the Coalition for Democratic Change. After winning the first round of the 2017 election with 38.4% of the vote, he and Joseph Boakai of the Unity Party went into the second round of the election. In the second round, Weah was elected President of Liberia, winning a run-off against vice president Joseph Boakai with more than 60% of the vote.

Presidency (2018–2024)

Weah was sworn in as president on 22 January 2018, making him the fourth youngest-serving president in Africa, marking Liberia's first democratic transition in 74 years. He cited fighting corruption, reforming the economy, combating illiteracy and improving life conditions as the main targets of his presidency. As President, Weah has come under criticism for inciting violence on opposition candidates including Telia Urey in 2019. On 15 August 2022, three senior members of Weah's cabinet were sanctioned by the United States for alleged corruption.

Economic policy After winning the 2017 election, Weah promised a Pro-Poor Agenda for Development and Prosperity, saying that this will benefit not just the poor, but all Liberians.

In 2019 inflation went as high as 28%. It made many Liberians to worry which led protests called "Save the State" in Monrovia and in Washington, D.C.

In September 2019, Weah attended the National Economic Dialogue (NED), seeking solutions amidst Liberia's economic crisis. A host of organizations rallied to develop a comprehensive program aimed at bolstering Liberia's economy. Weah urged Liberians to use the Dialogue as a national platform to craft strategies and offer workable solutions for the crisis. The forum yielded several recommendations, some of which are listed below:

Review of recommendations of the TRC including the establishment of economic and war crimes court Printing of new currency Broad-based review of the national custom code Recapitalization of the Central Bank of Liberia Review of domestic and external debts Practical agriculture programs, peace and national reconciliation

During his second year in office, Weah and his administration witnessed a deterioration in the economy, with inflation reaching 30%. This economic downturn, coupled with payment delays, triggered protests against which the police employed tear gas and water cannons.

During his fourth State of the Nation address, President Weah presented a series of proposed economic policies and legislative reforms, aiming to address the worsening economic conditions.

After Weah came to power, Liberia's unemployment rate increased from 3% in 2017 to 4.1%. The Liberian economy grew 1–5% in the first five years of his administration (2018–2022).

Domestic policy On 29 January 2018, in his first annual message to the national legislature, he reduced his salary and other benefits by 25% with immediate effect, stating, "With the assessment that I gave you earlier of the poor condition of our economy, I believe that it is appropriate that we should all make sacrifices in the interest of our country. According to Article 60 of the Constitution of Liberia, the salaries of the president and the vice president are established by the Legislature of Liberia and cannot be increased or reduced during the period for which they are elected. However, in view of the very rapidly deteriorating situation of the economy, I am informing you today, with immediate effect, that I will reduce my salary and benefits by 25% and give the proceeds back to the Consolidated Fund for allocation and appropriation as they see fit."

On 29 January 2018, Weah announced he would seek constitutional changes to allow people of different ethnic descent to be citizens and allow foreigners to own land. He called the present situation "racist and inappropriate".

On 12 September 2020, he declared a national emergency over sexual violence in the country, pledging to create a special prosecutor for rape, a national sex offender registry, and a national task force to tackle the issue. He further announced a 2 million dollar emergency fund, part of which was used to purchase DNA-testing equipment for forensic identification of perpetrators. However, as of March 2022, the DNA-testing equipment had yet to be made functional. As well, the special prosecutor had yet to be appointed, the sex offender registry had yet to be implemented, and specialized gender-based violence courts had only been implemented in three of the sixteen Liberian counties.

Weah signed a drug bill into law which passed by the legislature after months. The law aimed to regulate, restrict, control, limit, or eradicate the illegal export and importation as well as the flagrant use, abuse, and proliferation of narcotics within the nation.

Months before the 2023 election, he accepted the endorsement of the Bassa people for re-election. They did this because "he has the competence and passion to develop Liberia."

Under his presidency Liberia has made improvements to education by constructing and renovating schools to make sure children have better education and environment.

Healthcare Healthcare in Liberia improved since he became president in 2018. His administration invested into health infrastructure and medical equipment. He also deployed doctors to many underserved areas of the country. Weah instituted health insurance programs. Liberia's first dialysis center was built under his administration. On 25 May 2018, following a meeting with President Weah, the Liberian Football Association president Musa Bility announced that Liberia would vote for the Canada–Mexico–United States World Cup bid, breaking ranks with the rest of Africa, who were voting for the Moroccan bid.

He made a visit to China to congratulate Xi Jinping on his re-election of General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party as well as the top leader of China. President Weah said he looked forward to further cementing the strong ties that exist between both countries since establishment between both nations.

In July 2023, he met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss topics of cementing ties, trade, cooperation on international affairs, peace, and security.

Song On 25 March 2020, the Liberian president recorded his song with the local group The Rabbis, the text of which was written by himself. In this song "He invites the Liberian and African population to stand up by all means against this virus SARS-CoV-2 which is causing damage around the world." "It could be your mother, it could be your dad, your brothers or your sisters. Let's all stand together to fight this dirty virus"-an extract from President Weah's song on a reggae rhythm. The majority of people in Liberia do not have internet or Facebook access, but radio is a popular and very accessible form of entertainment in the African country.. The song would be played on various stations across the country to properly broadcast the message, according to the president's spokesperson. Weah had already recorded a song against Ebola. wife Clar Weah: George, Tita, and Timothy; and a child from another relationship. In 2016, he was sued by the mother of his daughter for child support expenses. George and Timothy became footballers and signed for Paris Saint-Germain, with Timothy going on to play for the first team. Both played as youth internationals for the United States, and Timothy went on to play for the senior team. Weah has a cousin, Stephen Weah, who also played as a footballer for Preston Lions FC of Melbourne, Australia. His nephew Jester is a former gridiron football player in the National and Canadian Football Leagues.

Weah practiced Islam for ten years before converting to Christianity. In October 2017, he was spotted in the church of prominent Nigerian pastor T. B. Joshua alongside Liberian senator Prince Johnson. Joshua was allegedly a key influence in Johnson's decision to endorse Weah's candidacy in the 2017 election.

Weah holds French citizenship and speaks French fluently.