By Kolawole Ojebisi
The Disciplinary Committee of Confederation of African Football (CAF) has awarded the Super Eagles of Nigeria three points and three goals in their aborted matchday 4 2025 African Cup of Nations qualifier match against Libya.
The match was scheduled for Benghazi on October 15 as the returning leg of a double-header qualifier which Nigeria had already won the first leg in Uyo by defeating Libya by one goal to nil. Ahead of the return leg, the Nigerian team arrived in Benghazi for the match via a chartered flight, on October 13
However, the flight was diverted from the their initial destination about an hour to landing.
The Nigerian players had to land at the Al Abraq International Airport, which is only used for hajj operations.
After landing, the NFF made arrangements for the trip by road to the venue of the match following the absence of officials of the Libyan Football Federation.
However, officials at the airport did not allow the chartered bus to enter the airport. The players and officials, therefore, had to bed down at the airport.
The unsavoury treatment the Nigerian players and officials were subjected to in Libya attracted criticisms from football enthusiasts across Africa and beyond which prompted CAF to look into the fiasco.
In its ruling on Saturday, signed by the chairman, Ousmane Kane, the Disciplinary Board ruled that the Libya Football Federation was found to have breached Article 31 of the Africa Cup of Nations Regulations and Articles 82 and 151 of the CAF Disciplinary Code.
The Libya Football Federation was also ordered to pay a fine of USD 50,000 with the fine to be paid 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.
With the decision, the Eagles are now on 10 points from four matches, four points better than second-placed Benin Republic, while Rwanda has five points. Bottom-placed Libya have only one point and is out of the running for qualification.
Victory or draw against the Cheetahs of Benin Republic in Abidjan on Thursday, 14th November (a matchday 5 encounter) will land the Super Eagles a ticket to the finals in Morocco, December 2025/January 2026.
