Nigeria handed three points and Libya fined after AFCON boycott

IKEJA, Nigeria - Oct. 28, 2024 - PRLog -- The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has awarded Nigeria three points and a three-goal victory over Libya for their AFCON qualifier earlier this month.  Nigeria were due to play Libya in Benghazi in early October but chose to return home instead of playing the fixture. The Super Eagles players and staff flew out to Libya but were diverted to the Al Abraq Airport instead of their original destination of Benghazi Airport, which is over 200km and three and a half hours away from where they were staying.

The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) claimed in a statement that they were stuck at the Al Abraq Airport throughout the night, with some players suggesting that they were left without food and water.  The Libyan FA has been fined $50,000 following the CAF ruling, with payment due within 60 days of notification of the present decision. The outcome of the Disciplinary Committee means that Nigeria is close to qualifying for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, with two matches to spare. As a result, the Super Eagles are now on 10 points from four matches, four points ahead of second-placed Benin Republic, while Rwanda has five points. Bottom-placed Libya has only one point and is out of the running for qualification.

A win or draw against the Cheetahs of Benin Republic in Abidjan on Thursday, 14 November (a match day 5 encounter) will secure the Super Eagles a ticket to the finals in Morocco, scheduled for December 2025/January 2026. The Nigerian team had boycotted the match citing safety concerns, after being left stranded at the remote Al-Abraq airport on the outskirts of Benghazi for over 22 hours. The LFF, in response, accused the Nigeria Football Federation of not cooperating with it regarding the travel itinerary. It also alleged that the Libyan national team had suffered the same fate in Nigeria during the reverse fixture a week earlier, claiming the team was left stranded at the Port-Harcourt Airport by Nigerian authorities.

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