By S. Siapha Mulbah
Hundreds of football fans across Monrovia under the banner “Liberia National Fanbase Association” (LNFA), have reawakened their commitment made in 2023 to end all forms of violence among spectators at different games venues, as they continue to promote the growth of football in the country.
The national fanbase association over the weekend celebrated its first anniversary with series of activities in the township of Gardnerville, with a call to all members to adequately continue promoting peace around the stadiums as football programs remain active for their own entertainment.
Speaking at the Two United Sports Association (TUSA) field, where the fans had gathered to have a recall of their first year as a national unity platform, the president of the association, Hilary Johnson, explained the historicity of the fanbase, noting that every team in the Liberian national league now has a member in the Liberia National Fanbase Association.
Johnson disclosed that the group has achieved one of its key mandates that it was established for in March of last year, which has to do with a reduction of violence that occurs around the stadiums when games are playing.
According to him, it became an alarming concern of many football stakeholders when various teams’ fans were seen going against each other in series of brutalities at different sporting venues, only because they were disenchanted either by match officials’ decisions or other arguments that did not satisfy one party.
He explained that the incident frequently existed among the football fans until it was realized in 2023 that the fans were only going into commotion with each other because there was no platform to have all of them under a singular umbrella, and the realization led to the formation of the National Fanbase Association, which is now like a mother organization to all football fans across the country.
Hilary Johnson then called on other Liberian teams’ supporters to sign up with the National Fanbase Association in order to promote peace and contribute to the positive shift in the dimension of football in the country.
He however urged sports enthusiasts to join the fanbase on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in supporting the Liberian National Lone Star, as the nation’s pride and joy takes on Djibouti in the return leg of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations preliminary qualifiers that will be played at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville City.
The celebration of the Liberia National Fanbase Association was marked by a colorful ceremony and a sporting festival where the ladies of the Gardnerville Old-Timers Kickball Association (GOLKA) played the girls of the fanbase in a single kickball fixture, and the boys of the fanbase played against the Sports Writers’ Association of Liberia (SWAL) in a football match.
In terms of result from the two games that were played, it was not a favorable one for the celebrants as they lost to GOLKA by 13-3 home runs in kickball, and lost to SWAL 4-1 in the football category.
