FA Cup winner George Weah has undertaken a dramatic career shift since hanging up his boots in 2003 and is now preparing to be named as the next President of Liberia.
Vote counting is underway, with Weah expected to pip Vice-President Joseph Boakai to the top job of the West African nation.
After voting took place on Boxing Day, he tweeted: “It is with deep emotion that I want to thank you, the Liberian people, for honouring me with your vote today. It is a great hope.”
He added: “The Liberian people clearly made their choice yesterday and all together we are very confident in the result of the electoral process.”
The 51-year-old won the first round of the election process with 38.4 percent of the total votes cast – shy of the 50 per cent required to claim an outright victory.
With the final result expected by the end of this week, here is everything you need to know about the presidential hopeful.
Who is George Weah?
Born in Monrovia slum, Liberia in 1966, Weah grew up playing football in one of the most impoverished regions of one of the poorest nations on the planet.
After impressing in the Liberian Premier League, Weah was whisked over to France by Arsene Wenger, who was manager of Monaco at the time.
In an interview with the Guardian this week, Weah credited the Arsenal boss for his successes on the pitch.
He said: “He was a father figure and regarded me as his son. This was a man, when racism was at its peak, who showed me love. He wanted me to be on the pitch for him every day.”
After a successful spell at Monaco, in which he won his first African Footballer of the Year award, Weah transferred to Paris Saint Germain in 1992.
But his most prolific period came while playing for Series A titans AC Milan, where he scored 58 goals in less than 150 games.
In 2000, Weah moved over to England to play on loan at Chelsea, before enjoying a short stint at Manchester City.
Weah retired from professional football in 2003 with countless personal accolades including a Ballon d’Or, FIFA World Player of the Year, African Footballer of the Year (X3) and UEFA Champions League Top Scorer Award.
Following the end of the Second Liberian Civil War in 2003, Weah moved into politics.
He ran for president in 2005 but lost out to Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who his critics claimed was better-qualified for the position.
Weah remains largely popular in Liberia and is seen by many as a hero. After voting on Tuesday, he told reporters that he is “focused” on victory.
He said: “We are making our decision today and you can see I am excited and I know that I am going to win because Liberians have resolved to make me their next President.
“My focus now is to make sure I come out of the election victorious.
“From there, I am going to get on the drawing board with my team and then we’ll put a plan together to move our country forward.”