{"id":85778,"date":"2025-12-12T15:29:29","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T15:29:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/maryland-grand-kru-set-for-county-meet-kickoff-saturday"},"modified":"2025-12-12T16:51:44","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T16:51:44","slug":"maryland-grand-kru-set-for-county-meet-kickoff-saturday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/maryland-grand-kru-set-for-county-meet-kickoff-saturday","title":{"rendered":"Maryland &amp; Grand Kru Set for County Meet Kickoff Saturday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Liberia. <\/strong><\/span>All roads lead to the Martha Tubman Stadium this Saturday as Maryland County and Grand Kru County officially open the 2025\/2026 National County Sports Meet.<\/p>\n<p>The Ministry of Youth and Sports (MYS) has confirmed that this year\u2019s kickoff in the Southeast is part of a deliberate strategy to decentralize the nation\u2019s biggest sporting festival.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur aim is to decentralize the County Meet and allow more citizens to participate,\u201d Youth and Sports Minister Jerror Cole Bangalu emphasized at the Ministry of Information regular briefing. \u201cThis event must reach every corner of Liberia, and hosting the opener in Harper is a testament to that commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to him only one match each in football and kickball will be played on the opening day (Saturday) while the full group-stage action will then continue across all four host venues on Sunday, December 14, 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Minister Bangalu disclosed that the government has been working closely with host counties to significantly upgrade key facilities, signaling a major commitment to sports infrastructure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have helped host counties improve their infrastructure,\u201d he stated. Crucially, the Ministry and the Liberia Football Association (LFA) have provided Grand Cape Mount County with artificial turf to transform the Momo Tawah Stadium in Robertsport.<\/p>\n<p>Cape Mount is expected to construct the sub-base, with the Ministry and LFA set to oversee the turf installation in the coming months.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, the Flody Tomah Stadium in Sanniquellie, Nimba County, will be officially completed and dedicated on Saturday. This completion is vital to ensure simultaneous final matches, a measure designed to reduce the risk of match-fixing.<\/p>\n<p>Finance Ministry Confirms US$400,000 Tournament Investment<\/p>\n<p>Deputy sports minister Andy Quamie confirmed the government\u2019s substantial financial commitment to the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>The Ministry of Finance has already disbursed US$250,000 as initial operational support and US$150,000 more scheduled for release in early January 2026<\/p>\n<p>This commitment brings the total government investment in the 2025\/2026 County Meet to US$400,000.<\/p>\n<p>To support preparations, each county has received US$10,000 as part of its initial package, with the remaining allocation to be issued following the next disbursement.<\/p>\n<p><b>Tournament Scaled Down to Three Core Sports<\/b><\/p>\n<p>To improve the quality of play and enhance budgeting efficiency, the tournament will now feature a streamlined program of three core disciplines:Football,Kickball and Basketball<\/p>\n<p>The grand finale is scheduled for Sunday, January 18, 2026at the Samuel K. Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville city.<\/p>\n<p><b>Full Match Schedule for Sunday, December 14, 2025<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Following Saturday\u2019s opening matches in Maryland, the tournament will continue on Sunday across the remaining three venues with eight games scheduled in football and kickball.<\/p>\n<p>Group B \u2013 Ganta, Nimba County<\/p>\n<p>Match 1: BOMI vs. MARGIBI (Kickball &amp; Football)<\/p>\n<p>Match 2: NIMBA (Host) vs. SINOE (Kickball &amp; Football)<\/p>\n<p>Group C \u2013 Buchanan, Grand Bassa County<\/p>\n<p>Match 1: GRAND GEDEH vs. GRAND CAPE MOUNT (Kickball &amp; Football)<\/p>\n<p>Match 2: GRAND BASSA (Host) vs. LOFA (Kickball &amp; Football)<\/p>\n<p>Group D \u2013 Bopolu, Gbarpolu County<\/p>\n<p>Match: GBARPOLU vs. MONTSERRADO (Kickball &amp; Football)<\/p>\n<p><b>A Festival of Unity and Culture<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The National County Sports Meet remains Liberia\u2019s largest cultural convergence, blending athletics, traditional performances, music, dance, and profound community pride.<\/p>\n<p>This year\u2019s theme, \u201cInclusive Development Through Sports,\u201d will guide youth outreach and community engagement programs throughout the host counties.<\/p>\n<p>With upgraded venues, renewed government support, and rising national anticipation, the 2025\/2026 edition is widely expected to be one of the most vibrant and inclusive County Meets in recent history.<\/p>\n<p><b>A Tournament of Unity and Culture<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Organizers say this year\u2019s event tournament held under the theme \u201cInclusive Development Through Sports\u201d remains not just a competition but a national cultural festival blending athletics, music, tradition, and community pride.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For More News And Analysis About <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Liberia<\/span> Follow <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Liberia. All roads lead to the Martha Tubman Stadium this Saturday as Maryland County and Grand Kru County officially open the 2025\/2026 National County Sports Meet. The Ministry of Youth and Sports (MYS) has confirmed that this year\u2019s kickoff in the Southeast is part of a deliberate strategy to decentralize the nation\u2019s biggest [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":85777,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[234],"class_list":["post-85778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-liberia"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Maryland &amp; Grand Kru Set for County Meet Kickoff Saturday - Liberia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"All roads lead to the Martha Tubman Stadium this Saturday as Maryland County and Grand Kru County officially open the 20 ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/liberia\/all-news\/maryland-grand-kru-set-for-county-meet-kickoff-saturday\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Maryland &amp; 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