AFCON 2025Q: We Have No Hands In Super Eagles’ ‘Inhumane Treatment’ — Libya FA

The Libyan Football Federation’s rebuttal raises more questions than it answers, and frankly, does little to address the glaring inconsistencies and sinister undertones of the treatment meted out to the Nigerian Super Eagles. Their attempt to wash their hands of any involvement in the debacle comes off as insincere and, frankly, disingenuous. How exactly do they expect anyone to believe this was a mere logistical hiccup when the events paint a much darker picture?

Let’s begin with the diversion of the Nigerian team’s flight. Diverting a plane to a smaller, ill-equipped airport at the last minute, especially when the team was on final approach to Benghazi, is no minor inconvenience. This isn’t about routine air traffic control or security checks—it reeks of something more deliberate. The question is simple: if it was such a routine diversion, why were there no provisions made to accommodate the Nigerian team? Why were there no buses to transport them, no reception team, no basic hospitality, and most egregiously, no access to food or water for hours? This doesn’t sound like an innocent oversight but a calculated move to frustrate and demoralize the Nigerian delegation. What if the plane had run out of fuel during this rerouting? The lives of players, coaches, and officials were put at risk in what can only be described as a premeditated act of hostility.

Now, let’s talk about the hotels. According to reports, hotels in the vicinity refused to accommodate the Nigerian team under direct orders from “above.” This raises an even more critical question: if the Libyan Football Federation had no role in this, then who issued these orders? Were the hotels also enforcing “routine security measures”? The idea that this could be attributed to a mere mix-up is absurd. If the Libyan authorities had truly valued “fairness” and “mutual respect,” as their statement claims, wouldn’t they have immediately stepped in to rectify the situation and provide basic accommodations to the stranded Nigerian contingent?

What’s even more alarming is the obvious plot behind this entire incident. The Libyans knew full well that they had no real chance of beating the Super Eagles on the pitch. Let’s not forget, Libya is currently at the bottom of the table, desperate for any way to claw back their slim chances of qualification. It’s clear that their authorities had no intention of playing this match. By diverting the Nigerian team and creating a hostile environment that would force the players to abandon the game, they could then evoke FIFA’s rule on no-shows and claim the three points by default. It’s a cowardly and calculated scheme to use loopholes in the rules rather than fair competition on the field. They knew that in an actual match, they stood no chance of getting even a point, so they resorted to underhanded tactics to try and salvage their qualifying campaign.

Furthermore, how are the players expected to trust the same authorities that locked them out of hotels with their food, drinks, and safety on match day? The Libyan rebuttal conveniently sidesteps the most critical aspect of this debacle: the deliberate nature of the actions taken against the Nigerian team. We’re not talking about minor inconveniences here; these are life-threatening situations. When players and officials are stranded without food or water, you’re not just undermining their preparation—you’re endangering their lives. How do we know the hospitality they claim to offer wouldn’t have extended to tampered meals or drinks, had the Nigerian team gone along with this charade? The team made the right call in refusing to trust such an environment.

The Libyan Football Federation also mentions that their own national team faced “significant challenges” in Nigeria but conveniently fails to detail the extent of those challenges. Did they face a situation where hotels refused to accommodate them on direct orders? Were they stranded at an airport for hours with no food or water? Or is this an attempt to draw a false equivalence to justify what happened in Libya?

Let’s not mince words here—this was more than just a logistical misstep. The Libyan authorities had a clear plan to abandon the match altogether, knowing that their only hope of winning the three points was through FIFA’s technicalities. Football is supposed to unite, but the actions taken by Libya did everything to divide, frustrate, and sabotage. It’s not just the Nigerian players who are questioning the integrity of the Libyan authorities; any football fan with a shred of common sense can see through the hollow excuses in this statement.

Ultimately, the Libyan Federation’s claims of hospitality and fairness ring hollow in the face of the facts. The Super Eagles were treated with contempt, their safety jeopardized, and their dignity trampled on—all in the name of a football match. This is not how international football should be conducted, and the Nigerian players were right to question the entire process. Until CAF and FIFA take decisive action against these kinds of underhanded tactics, the integrity of African football will remain in jeopardy.