AFCON Qualifier: Super Eagles arrive Nigeria after Libya fiasco; LFF threatens legal actions over Nigeria’s withdrawal; federation president resigns; CAF probing incident, says “unacceptable”

The Super Eagles have arrived in Nigeria after their ordeal in Libyan for a 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier.

Players and officials were stranded for about 13 hours at a Libyan airport ahead of the game which was supposed to take place on Tuesday. Photos of the team sleeping on benches went viral early Monday, prompting condemnation.

But hours later, the team landed in Kano (for a brief stop and headed to Abuja) after Libyan authorities cleared their flight to take off.

William Troost-Ekong, the teams captain wrote in his X handle Monday, Proud of this team, NAIJA SPIRIT can’t be broken. Throw at us what you want, it’s in our blood to overcome. Ive seen a lot in my 10 years with this group, but nothing like this, an experience that has brought us even closer TOGETHER. pic.twitter.com/AwGw4aQW2y

“I’ve seen a lot in my 10 years with this group, but nothing like this, an experience that has brought us even closer TOGETHER.”

“As things escalated, this time overcoming meant taking a stand for what’s right regardless of the consequences. No team should be mistreated this way. Football is about respect, and that starts by respecting ourselves”.

The Nigerian players and officials had landed in Libya ahead of the match. But after their flight was rerouted from Benghazi where the game was meant to hold.

They were denied access to food and other supplies with some members of the team taking to social media to lament about the incident.

That prompted condemnation across the globe with Nigerian authorities describing the incident as “unfortunate”. The Minister of Sports Development John Enoh likened it to “almost hostage” and said the Super Eagles were no longer taking part in the game.

“To say the least, they face an almost ‘hostage’ situation. These are sportsmen set to compete in an AFCON qualifying match come Tuesday!” he said.

“For now, our primary concern is the safety of the members of our national team. With the events of the past hours, their safety is not guaranteed and the team insists they’re unable to go ahead with the match not just because of the trauma and consequent psychological torture but also because of fear for their safety.”

But the Libyan Football Federation denied any wrong doing saying: “There are no grounds to accuse the Libyan security teams or the Libyan Football Federation of deliberately orchestrating this incident. Such actions are inconsistent with our values and principles,” the LFF said and linked the delay to logistical issues and other challenges.

The Libyan Football Federation has condemned the withdrawal of Nigeria from the second-leg match against Libya in Benghazi, saying it will take all legal actions needed to protect the interests of the Libyan football squad.

In a statement shared by The Libya Observer, the LFF said despite the inhumane treatment they had received in Nigeria, they decided to play the first-leg match, confirming that the Nigerian side was uncooperative with the Libyan delegation.

The LFF clarified that the treatment they received in Nigeria was much worse than Nigeria had in Libya.

The development comes after the Nigerian football senior men’s team, Super Eagles cited safety concerns after being stranded at Al Abaq Airport for over 13 hours without access to necessities like food, water, or a place to rest.

The situation soon led to uproar, further fueled by photos of the Super Eagles team sleeping on benches at the airport.

The Super Eagles captain, William Troost-Ekong, described the conditions at Al Abaq Airport as “disgraceful,” accusing Libyan authorities of deliberately playing “mind games” by revoking their landing permit and leaving the team stranded without basic amenities.

The ill-treatment prompted Nigeria to pull out of the match, initially set for Tuesday, October 15.

The LFF statement read, “The Libyan Football Federation condemns the measures taken by the Nigerian Football Federation by refusing to play the Libya-Nigeria match in the African Cup of Nations qualifiers scheduled for Tuesday, October 15, stressing that it will take all legal measures to preserve the interests of the Libyan national football team.”

“The Libyan Federation attaches some inhumane footage that did not prevent the Libyan mission from playing the Nigeria-Libya match last Friday in Nigeria, out of cooperation with the Confederation of African Football.

“The Libyan Football Federation clarifies that its Nigerian counterpart did not cooperate with it in any way, whether regarding the first or second leg match, noting that the events beyond our control do not equal a small part of what the Libyan national team was exposed to in the first leg match,” it said.

The statement further offered an apology to Libyan football fans for the confusion and delays in the match arrangement, attributing these issues to the Nigerian Football Federation’s actions.

“The Libyan Football Federation apologises to Libyan football fans everywhere and to the parties concerned with the match arrangements due to the state of confusion caused by the Nigerian Football Federation, which led to the match not being held on time,” the statement concluded.

But the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) had said it was going to probe the “disturbing conditions” after reaching out to the Nigerian and Libyan authorities.

“The matter has been referred to the CAF Disciplinary Board for investigation and appropriate action will be taken against those who violated the CAF Statutes and Regulations,” CAF said.

Meanwhile, Abdelhakim Al-Shalmani, the president of the Libyan Football Federation, has resigned from his position during a regular meeting of the Federation’s General Assembly.

In his resignation statement, Al-Shalmani cited the challenges and failures faced by Libyan sports as the main reasons behind his decision. He expressed his gratitude to the General Assembly members and sought forgiveness from all sectors within the sports community.

Al-Shalmani, speaking to The Libya Observer, said, “I do not want to be part of the failure in Libyan sports. We faced difficulties during the previous period,” adding, “I forgive everyone from all segments of the sports sector.”

The resignation comes amid growing tensions between the Super Eagles of Nigeria and the Libyan national team, ahead of their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier. The Super Eagles were subjected to what many deemed inhumane treatment upon arrival in Libya, with the team left stranded at Al Abraq International Airport for over 15 hours.