Libya Threatens Legal Action Following Nigeria’s Withdrawal from AFCON Qualifier

The Libyan Football Federation has threatened legal action following Nigeria’s decision to withdraw from the scheduled 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, asserting their responsibility to protect the national team’s interests.

The Super Eagles cited safety concerns after being stranded at Al Abaq Airport for over 13 hours due to an unexpected diversion on Sunday, which led Nigeria to pull out of the match originally scheduled for Tuesday, October 15.

The controversy intensified when photos of the Super Eagles team sleeping on benches went viral early Monday, prompting condemnation from Nigerian authorities.

The situation deteriorated as players and other personnel were stranded at the Libyan airport for more than 13 hours without access to basic necessities like food, water, or a place to rest.

In a statement issued by the Libyan Football Federation on Monday night, October 14, the LFF accused the Nigerian Football Federation of not cooperating in organizing the match, which they claimed contributed to the confusion that resulted in the current predicament.

“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 statement read.

The LFF also stated that the “incidents beyond its control” could not be compared to what the Libyan team experienced in the first leg, implying that the Nigerian federation was responsible for the mishandling of both matches.

“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 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.