By Danesius Marteh, archie2024@gmail.com
The New Energy Electric Vehicles Liberia (NEEV-Liberia) says it is opened to a conversation that will lead to a mouthwatering sponsorship package for the national league.
It follows a proposal from 30 clubs in response to calls from the Liberia Football Association (LFA) for stakeholders to find a better and suitable sponsorship than the Orange-Liberia deal of US$252,000, which ended during the 2023/2024.
NEEV-Liberia chief executive officer Cassell Anthony Kuoh, Sr. says it can provide US$500,000 to sponsor the national league as part of its corporate social responsibility.
“We believe that we love and have the passion for the game of soccer. So we believe we can channel some of our resources into football development as a Liberian-owned entity.
“We want to be one of the first to foster such initiative so that the international companies can follow. So we will be hoping that the LFA can do the needful to contact her own Liberian company void of politics and let’s see how best we can be of help to our national league.
“I don’t think it is a bad thing to have your country’s national league named after a Liberian-owned company instead of a cellphone company that is owned by foreign partners.
“We are looking forward to receiving such a letter from the president of the Liberia Football Association (LFA) so that we can see how best we can open the discussion prior to our league. We have approximately three weeks to the league,” Kuoh explained.
Asked why NEEV can’t write the LFA about its willingness to sponsor the league, Kuoh said: “There is nothing out there by the LFA that people should bid to become sponsors. It is you, who are seeking sponsorship, that write would be sponsors. You need to ask the sponsors. You need to write them. That’s how you look for money.”
NEEV provided a sponsorship package of US$20,000 to Shaita Angels in the upper women’s division for the 2024/2025 season.
Kuoh said Raji should forget about the footballing politics and the jibes he has been throwing at him to ask for the sponsorship, which doubles the Orange deal.
“I don’t believe in that. I believe he should be void of politics and solicit the [support of] clubs because clubs are looking for money. It is simple. This is not a political issue. This is a Liberian company that wants to support football.
“I encourage him not to see this as Cassell Anthony Kuoh, Sr. Let him see it as contributing to the development of football in Liberia. We understand everybody plays politics. He has said Cassell Kuoh has dirty money. We understand all of that.
“The government of Liberia is working with me. I run companies in this country and my money has sources. NEEV Liberia just brought in 126 motorbikes, 22 cars and 60 electrical tricycles. NEEV Liberia is doing business with government and paying taxes to government.
“So if NEEV Liberia is opting and the CEO of NEEV is willing to sit on the table with the LFA, I think it should be void of political interest. Let us discuss the matter and see how best we forge Liberian football to its better place,” an emphatic Kuoh said.
LFA President Mustapha Raji is unwilling to settle for a NEEV sponsorship with Kuoh having declared his intention to replace him in April 2026.
“If an individual has money and wants to give to the football association for sponsorship and the football association decides that they don’t need that amount, it is still easy to provide your sponsorship to all the clubs, who want to take it,” Raji told ELBC’s Super Sports program on 5 October.
The 2024/2024 national league kicked-off on 16 October without a title sponsor.