The Super Eagles have been handed a 3-0 victory and three priceless points in their Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Libya after a travel ordeal that prevented them from playing. In its statement on Saturday, the Confederation of African Football’s disciplinary committee has given Nigeria those points, catapulting her to the top of Group D with 10 points and on the brink of qualification into the 2025 AFCON finals in Morocco.
The Nigerian team, kept at the remote Libyan airport in Bayda for over 16 hours upon arrival, refused to play the match on 15 October in Benghazi. It said that it had no access to food, water and means of communication with Libyan officials, and finally returned home.
The Libyan Football Federation, however, said their players too faced similar travel hassles just days earlier when they played against Nigeria but added the incident with Jos-based Plateau United should not be intentional. In any case, CAF found Libya in breach of regulations that obligate hosts to facilitate visiting teams’ entry and transportation.
The result was a $50,000 fine for Libya, while Motsepe has called for further strict regulations to improve the lot of visiting teams in African football.
