The Liberian National County Sports Meet is the top knockout county tournament of the Liberian football inaugurated in 1956. It is an annual sporting festival organised and hosted by the Ministry of Youth and Sports in collaboration with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The event is primarily a platform intended to forge national unity and reconciliation in Liberia.
The National County Sport Meet is the most watched football tournament across Liberia, with over 1.5 million football fans tuning in to listen over Radio, watching live from different Liberian online football sources, and also visiting the various stadiums in which the games can be played.
Competition format
Beginning in December sometimes January, the competition proceeds with a group stage of 15 teams, divided into four groups, with the first three groups carrying four teams and the last group carrying three. Each team plays every member of its group, and the team with the highest point and the runners-up in each group will then proceed to the next round while the other team will be eliminated.
- Quarterfinals (New Format): Beginning from the 2025/2026 tournament, the eight quarterfinalist teams are divided into two groups and play in a round-robin format, rather than the traditional single-game knockout, to increase competition opportunities. These matches are centralized in the capital, Monrovia, specifically at the Samuel Kanyon Doe (SKD) Sports Complex.
- Knockout Stage (Semifinals & Finals): The top teams from the quarterfinal groups advance to the semifinals, which are single-elimination matches. The winners proceed to the grand finale.
List of winners
History
In 1970, the Sasstown Territory, which is now part of Grand Kru County, emerged victorious in the county meet, while the Kru Coast Territory claimed the title in 1974. Grand Kru County has won the county meet a total of four times. Notable players from Sasstown during that period included Patrick Arthur, Anthony Wesseh, Tarpeh Roberts, Sylvester Redâ Weah, Michael Tarplah, Anthony Sayon Nagbe, Experience Tony, and Telemu.
Records and Statistics
Championship Records
- Most Titles: Nimba County holds the record for the most championships with seventitles (1978, 1979, 2010, 2011, 2022, 2023, 2026).
- Back-to-Back Wins: Nimba County is the only team to have won consecutive titles on three occasions.
- Undefeated finals: Grand Kru County County holds the unique distinction of never having lost a grand final appearance, with five championship wins.
- Most Finals Appearances: Nimba County has appeared in the most grand finals, with 11 appearances
- Most Finals Lost: Montserrado County has lost the most finals, with five defeats.
- First Winner: Maryland County was the first county to win the tournament in 1956, defeating Montserrado County on a coin toss.
- Never Won: Sinoe County is the only county that has yet to win the championship.
Player and tournament records
- Highest Scoring Final: The 2009 final saw the most goals scored when Bomi County defeated River Gee County 5âÂÂ2, for a total of 7 goals.
- Scored in Three Finals: James Tarpeh holds the unique record of being the first player to score in three different finals of the tournament.
References
External links