Liberia national football team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Liberia women's national football team.

Liberia
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)The Lone Stars
AssociationLiberia Football Association
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationWAFU (West Africa)
Head coachAnsu Keita
CaptainOscar Dorley
Most capsJoe Nagbe (77)
Top scorerGeorge Weah (18)
Home stadiumSKD Stadium
FIFA codeLBR
First colors
Second colors
FIFA ranking
Current 153 Steady (21 December 2023)[1]
Highest66 (July 2001)
Lowest164 (October–November 2010)
First international
France Ivory Coast 0–2 Liberia 
(Abidjan, Ivory Coast; unknown date 1954)
Biggest win
 Liberia 5–0 Djibouti 
(Monrovia, Liberia; 29 March 2016)
Biggest defeat
 Ghana 6–0 Liberia 
(Accra, Ghana; 6 April 1975)
Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances2 (first in 1996)
Best resultGroup stage (1996 and 2002)

The Liberia national football team, nicknamed the Lone Stars, represents Liberia in men's international football and is controlled by the Liberia Football Association. Although the nation produced the 1995 FIFA World Player of the Year, George Weah, its football team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup and has qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations just twice—in 1996 and 2002. It is a member of both FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

History

African Cup of Nations

In 1965 Liberia played in first campagin 1965 qualification qualifying campaign, losting its first match 0–1 against Ivory Coast. They also won 3–2 against DR Congo however lost both returning fixtures and were eliminated in the first round. In 1967 Liberia played in 1968 qualification qualifying campaign, drawing its first match 2–2 against Guinea. They also drew against Senegal however lost both returning fixtures and were eliminated in the first round. Liberia returned to qualifying in 1976 but lost in the preliminary round to Togo, falling to defeat in both fixtures. After another absence, Liberia again joined AFCON qualifying in 1982 in the preliminary rounds but failed to progress after two draws against Gambia, losing on the away goals rule.

Liberia withdrew from qualifying for the 1984 African Cup of Nations, but the following tournament they managed to secure their first win during qualifying, a 3–1 first-leg victory over Mauritania. They failed to capitalize on this advantage, losing 3–0 in the second leg. Liberia then faced Sierra Leone and Mali during the 1988 qualification and 1990 qualification respectively, but again failed to progress. In 1992, Liberia withdrew from qualifying before playing a match (possibly due to the ongoing First Liberian Civil War), and in 1994, Liberia was put into a group with two participants that withdrew during qualifying (Tanzania and Burkina Faso) however they failed to take advantage of this and finished with zero points, having lost to Ghana twice.

In the 1996 African Cup of Nations qualification, Liberia managed to register three wins (against Togo, Tunisia and Mauritania) and four draws, which saw them finish the group in second place and qualify for their first African Cup of Nations tournament. Following the withdrawal of Nigeria, Liberia was placed in a group with Gabon and Zaire. Liberia opened the tournament with a 2–1 victory over Gabon with goals from Kelvin Sebwe and Mass Sarr Jr. but lost 2–0 to Zaire. This meant that Liberia finished bottom of the group on goal difference and failed to progress to the knock-out stages.

Liberia missed out on returning to the African Cup of Nations in 1998 as they finished one point off of qualification. In 2000, they defeated Niger in the preliminary rounds, but again failed to advance to the main tournament, this time finishing behind Algeria on goal difference.

In 2002 African Cup of Nations qualification, Liberia beat Cape Verde in the preliminary rounds, then they finished top of their group to qualify for the main tournament for the second time in their history. In the 2002 African Cup of Nations, Liberia drew their first game 1–1 with Mali (goal scored by George Weah) and drew their second game 2–2 against Algeria (goals from Prince Daye and Kelvin Sebwe), but in their final group game, needing a win against Nigeria, they lost 1–0.

FIFA World Cup

Liberia first entered the qualifying process for the FIFA World Cup in 1966, however, they withdrew in protest against the fact that too few places had been reserved for Africa and Asia, along with all fourteen other African nations that had initially entered qualifying.

Liberia next entered qualifying in 1982 against Guinea after receiving a bye in the first round. They lost 1–0 over the two legs and were eliminated. In 1986, Liberia was again eliminated without having scored a goal, falling 4–0 to Nigeria. In 1990, Liberia won its first FIFA qualifying match defeating Ghana to progress to the second round. Despite finishing second in their group, Liberia failed to advance to the final qualification round, ending two points behind group winners Egypt.

In 1998, Liberia beat Gambia in the first qualification round, but finished twelve points adrift of Tunisia in their group. In 2002, Liberia had their strongest qualifying campaign, however, a loss against Ghana in their penultimate group game gave Nigeria the opportunity to overtake them and secure the only qualification spot.

Team image

Kit supplier

Kit provider[3] Period
Denmark Hummel 1990–1994
Italy Diadora 1994–1995
Germany Adidas 1995–1999
Liberia Weah Sports 1999–2001
Unknown 2001–2003
Germany Adidas 2003–2004
Denmark Hummel 2004–2006
Italy Kappa 2006–2008
Germany Adidas 2008
Singapore Kubba 2009
Germany Adidas 2010–2012
Italy Erreà 2012
Indonesia SPECS 2012–2013
Spain Joma 2013–2014[4]
Germany Adidas 2015–2020
Germany Puma 2020–present

Results and fixtures

Main article: Liberia national football team results (2020–present)

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2023

24 March 2023 AFCON qualification South Africa  2–2  Liberia Johannesburg, South Africa
18:00 UTC+2
Report
Stadium: Orlando Stadium
Referee: Bamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia)
28 March 2023 AFCON qualification Liberia  1–2  South Africa Monrovia, Liberia
18:00 UTC±0
Report
Stadium: Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex
Referee: Daniel Nii Laryea (Ghana)
June 2023 AFCON qualification Liberia  Cancelled  Zimbabwe Liberia
--:-- UTC±0 Report
12 September Friendly Ghana  3–1  Liberia Accra, Ghana
 Report
Stadium: Accra Sports Stadium
Referee: Kouassi Attiogbe (Togo)
14 October Friendly Liberia  2–3  Libya Khouribga, Morocco
19:30 UTC+1
Report
  • Eisa 3' (pen.)
  • Bosheba 48'
  • Salama 66'
 Stadium: Phosphate Stadium
Referee: Bouchra Karboubi (Morocco)
17 October 2023 AFCON qualification Morocco  3–0  Liberia Agadir, Morocco
20:00 UTC+1
Report Stadium: Adrar Stadium
Referee: Ahmad Imtehaz Heeralall (Mauritius)
Note: Match postponed from 9 September due to 2023 Marrakesh-Safi earthquake.
17 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Liberia  0–1  Malawi Paynesville, Liberia
16:00 UTC±0 Report
  • Mphasi 78'
 Stadium: Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex
Referee: Antoine Effa (Cameroon)
20 November 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Liberia  0–1  Equatorial Guinea Paynesville, Liberia
16:00 UTC±0 Report
Stadium: Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex
Attendance: 3,044
Referee: Karim Sabry (Morocco)
23 November Friendly Liberia  6–1  Lesotho Johannesburg, South Africa
15:00 UTC+3 Stadium: Orlando Stadium

Coaching staff

Position Name
Head coach Liberia Ansu Keita
Assistant coach Liberia Anthony Nagbe
Deputy coach Liberia Allan Kouyateh
Goalkeeping coach Liberia Dagobert Kamara
Fitness coach Liberia Samson Purnell
Team manager Liberia Mauritius Konneh
Assistant Team manager Liberia Edgar Sidibeh

Coaching history

Caretaker managers are listed in italics

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Malawi and Equatorial Guinea on 17 and 20 November 2023.[5]

Caps and goals correct as of 17 October 2023, after the match against Morocco.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Boison Wynney (1996-12-27) 27 December 1996 (age 27) 6 0 Romania Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț
16 1GK Emmanuel Deanneh (1995-06-20) 20 June 1995 (age 28) 0 0 Liberia Bea Mountain
23 1GK Ashley Williams (2000-10-30) 30 October 2000 (age 23) 17 0 Liberia LISCR
3 2DF Jamal Arago (1993-08-28) 28 August 1993 (age 30) 8 0 Libya Al-Ahly
11 2DF Mark Pabai (2000-09-30) 30 September 2000 (age 23) 8 0 Slovenia Koper
13 2DF Joel Johnson (1992-09-20) 20 September 1992 (age 31) 8 0 United States Charlotte Independence
17 2DF Kemoh Kamara (1995-07-03) 3 July 1995 (age 28) 14 0 Liberia Bea Mountain
20 3MF Mohammed Sangare (1998-12-28) 28 December 1998 (age 25) 12 2 Scotland Livingston
24 2DF Sampson Dweh (2001-10-10) 10 October 2001 (age 22) 19 0 Czech Republic Viktoria Plzeň
2 3MF Tonia Tisdell (1992-01-02) 2 January 1992 (age 32) 16 1 Egypt Telecom Egypt
4 3MF Nohan Kenneh (2003-01-10) 10 January 2003 (age 21) 4 0 England Shrewsbury Town
6 3MF Saah Moses Jr. (2007-07-10) 10 July 2007 (age 16) 1 0 Liberia Discoveries SA
7 3MF Mohammed Kamara (1997-10-31) 31 October 1997 (age 26) 2 0 Israel Hapoel Haifa
8 3MF Marcus Macauley (1991-10-27) 27 October 1991 (age 32) 25 5 Malaysia PDRM
12 3MF Albert Korvah (1999-02-02) 2 February 1999 (age 25) 2 0 Nigeria Rivers United
15 3MF Brem Soumaoro (1996-08-08) 8 August 1996 (age 27) 11 0 Canada York United FC
18 3MF Divine Teah (2006-04-19) 19 April 2006 (age 17) 9 2 Liberia Nimba
19 3MF Oscar Dorley (captain) (1998-07-19) 19 July 1998 (age 25) 33 1 Czech Republic Slavia Prague
22 3MF Edward Ledlum (1999-06-15) 15 June 1999 (age 24) 8 0 Liberia Bea Mountain
25 3MF Daniel Toe (2000-07-15) 15 July 2000 (age 23) 0 0 Liberia LISCR
3MF Prince Saydee (1996-02-20) 20 February 1996 (age 27) 3 0 United States Hartford Athletic
9 4FW Kpah Sherman (1992-02-03) 3 February 1992 (age 32) 20 3 Malaysia Pahang
10 4FW William Jebor (1991-11-10) 10 November 1991 (age 32) 24 13 Malta Valletta
21 4FW Abu Kamara (1997-04-01) 1 April 1997 (age 26) 8 0 Malaysia Kuching City
4FW Sylvanus Nimely (1998-09-04) 4 September 1998 (age 25) 12 0 Uzbekistan Surkhon

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Tommy Songo (1995-04-20) 20 April 1995 (age 28) 22 0 Liberia LISCR v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
GK Derrick Julu (2002-05-13) 13 May 2002 (age 21) 1 0 Liberia Watanga v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
DF Seth Hellberg (1995-08-19) 19 August 1995 (age 28) 11 0 Sweden Brage v.  Morocco, 17 October 2023
DF Jeremy Saygbe (2001-06-01) 1 June 2001 (age 22) 13 0 Spain CA Marbella v.  Ghana, 12 September 2023
DF Prince Balde (1998-03-23) 23 March 1998 (age 25) 14 0 Iraq Al-Diwaniya v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
DF Darius Kah (1997-01-25) 25 January 1997 (age 27) 0 0 Liberia LISCR v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
MF Allen Njie (1999-07-26) 26 July 1999 (age 24) 21 0 Switzerland Aarau v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
MF Justin Salmon (1999-01-25) 25 January 1999 (age 25) 7 0 Sweden Degerfors v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
MF Joachim Adukor (1993-05-02) 2 May 1993 (age 30) 5 0 Free agent v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
MF Morris Konneh (2003-11-11) 11 November 2003 (age 20) 0 0 Liberia Heaven Eleven v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
FW Ketu Jerbo (1998-06-20) 20 June 1998 (age 25) 5 0 Liberia Bea Mountain v.  Ghana, 12 September 2023
FW Peter Wilson (1996-10-09) 9 October 1996 (age 27) 12 2 Norway Jerv v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023
FW Farsedu Logan (1997-11-10) 10 November 1997 (age 26) 1 0 Liberia Watanga v.  South Africa, 28 March 2023

Records

As of 20 November 2023[6]
Players in bold are still active with Liberia.

Most appearances

Rank Name Caps Goals Career
1 Joe Nagbe[a] 77 0 1986–2011
2 George Weah[b] 75 18 1986–2018
3 Kelvin Sebwe 62 10 1988–2008
4 James Debbah[c] 58 13 1986–2018
5 George Gebro 48 1 1997–2012
6 Anthony Laffor 46 5 2004–2018
7 Teah Dennis Jr. 44 1 2011–2019
8 Varmah Kpoto 40 1 1997–2008
9 Fallah Johnson 37 0 1995–2004
Zizi Roberts 37 9 1995–2003

Top goalscorers

George Weah is Liberia's top scorer with 18 goals.
Rank Name Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 George Weah[b] 18 75 0.24 1986–2018
2 William Jebor 13 27 0.48 2011–present
James Debbah[c] 13 58 0.22 1986–2018
4 Kelvin Sebwe 10 62 0.16 1988–2008
5 Zizi Roberts 9 37 0.24 1995–2003
6 Oliver Makor 8 32 0.25 1995–2008
7 Prince Daye 7 25 0.28 1996–2004
Jonathan Sogbie 7 27 0.26 1988–1998
9 Zah Rahan 6 35 0.17 2006–2017
10 Francis Doe 5 22 0.23 2004–2016
Isaac Tondo 5 22 0.23 2000–2005
Dioh Williams 5 24 0.21 2004–2016
Marcus Macauley 5 27 0.19 2011–present
Anthony Laffor 5 46 0.11 2004–2018

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Did not enter Declined participation
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974
Argentina 1978
Spain 1982 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 0 1
Mexico 1986 2 0 0 2 0 4
Italy 1990 8 3 3 2 4 3
United States 1994 Withdrew during qualifying 2 0 1 1 2 4
France 1998 Did not qualify 8 2 1 5 7 12
South Korea Japan 2002 10 6 1 3 11 2
Germany 2006 12 2 1 9 6 29
South Africa 2010 6 0 3 3 4 12
Brazil 2014 6 1 1 4 3 9
Russia 2018 4 1 1 2 4 6
Qatar 2022 8 3 0 5 8 10
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined 2 0 0 2 0 2
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total — 0/22 – – – – – – 70 18 13 39 49 94

Africa Cup of Nations

Africa Cup of Nations record
Appearances: 2
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Sudan 1957 Not affiliated to CAF
United Arab Republic 1959
Ethiopia 1962
Ghana 1963 Did not enter
Tunisia 1965 Did not qualify
Ethiopia 1968
Sudan 1970 Did not enter
Cameroon 1972
Egypt 1974
Ethiopia 1976 Did not qualify
Ghana 1978 Did not enter
Nigeria 1980
Libya 1982 Did not qualify
Ivory Coast 1984 Withdrew
Egypt 1986 Did not qualify
Morocco 1988
Algeria 1990
Senegal 1992 Withdrew
Tunisia 1994 Did not qualify
South Africa 1996 Group stage 13th 2 1 0 1 2 3
Burkina Faso 1998 Did not qualify
Ghana Nigeria 2000
Mali 2002 Group stage 9th 3 0 2 1 3 4
Tunisia 2004 Did not qualify
Egypt 2006
Ghana 2008
Angola 2010
Equatorial Guinea Gabon 2012
South Africa 2013
Equatorial Guinea 2015
Gabon 2017
Egypt 2019
Cameroon 2021
Ivory Coast 2023
Morocco 2025 To be determined
Kenya Tanzania Uganda 2027
Total Group stage 2/36 5 1 2 2 5 7

Honours

West African Nations Cup :

Notes

  1. ^ Nagbe retired from international duty in 2001 but later played two farewell matches in 2011.
  2. ^ a b Weah retired from international duty in 2002 but later played a farewell match in 2018.
  3. ^ a b Debbah retired from international duty in 2004 but later played a farewell match in 2018.

References

  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. December 21, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. February 15, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  3. ^ "Liberia Kit History". Football Kit Archive. Archived from the original on November 1, 2023. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  4. ^ Molaposc (July 21, 2014). "Molapo Sports Centre: A good win for Lesotho, but there is still work to do". Molapo Sports Centre. Archived from the original on November 1, 2023. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  5. ^ "Final Squad". Twitter. Liberia Football Association. Archived from the original on December 4, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  6. ^ Mamrud, Roberto. "Liberia - Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on December 9, 2022. Retrieved February 2, 2023.

External links

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