Nigeria Awarded 3-0 Win Over Libya Following Travel Ordeal and AFCON Match Dispute
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has awarded Nigeria’s Super Eagles a 3-0 win over Libya after Nigeria’s squad endured “inhumane treatment” while traveling for an Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match earlier this month. The decision follows complaints that the Nigerian team was stranded for over 20 hours at an unstaffed Libyan airport, left without food or water, and ultimately returned home without playing the scheduled match.
CAF’s disciplinary committee ruled that Libya would forfeit the match with a 3-0 penalty and also imposed a $50,000 fine on the Libyan team, citing violations of the regulations governing the treatment of visiting teams. The incident reportedly occurred after Nigeria’s charter flight arrived at the wrong location, hundreds of kilometres from the match venue in Benghazi, leaving players and staff stranded with limited resources.
The ruling propels Nigeria to the top of AFCON Group D with 10 points, now four points clear of Benin and five points ahead of Rwanda, with Libya trailing at the bottom with a single point. With only two qualifying matches remaining, Nigeria is in a strong position to secure one of the two top spots needed to qualify for the 2025 finals in Morocco.
Incidents of host teams creating obstacles for visiting squads are not uncommon in African football, where tactics such as long immigration delays, extensive bus journeys, and substandard facilities are often used to unsettle opponents.
