Ex-football star Weah is made Liberia’s president

George Weah, the former Chelsea and Manchester City footballer, was sworn in as Liberia’s new president yesterday in the country’s first transition between democratically elected leaders since 1944.

Weah, 51, took over from Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who spent 12 years at the helm, steering the west African nation out of the trauma of civil war.

Crowds queued for miles to reach the stadium where Weah was sworn in, singing, dancing and waving the Liberian flag. The Fifa World Player of the Year for 1995 has pledged to make prosperity and job creation a priority.