The captain said the players made this resolution because of the threat to their lives and hostilities of the host country since they landed on Sunday evening.
The players of the Nigerian national football team known as the Super Eagles have pulled out of their upcoming African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match against Libya.
This was announced in an Instagram story uploaded on Monday morning by the captain of the team, William Troost-Ekong.
The captain said the players made this resolution because of the threat to their lives and hostilities of the host country since they landed on Monday evening.
He said, “We have kept our spirit up but these are no conditions we will accept when done on purpose. Travelling by road is not safe here and you can only imagine how they would treat us in the hotel or the food they will try to give us. It was funny before but as a team we respect ourselves and under these conditions we won't play. @caf_online.”
Troost-Ekong’s statement was later confirmed by an official statement issued by the Nigerian Football Federation to newsmen on Monday morning.
The statement reads: “The Nigerian delegation for Tuesday’s 2025 AFCON qualifier against Libya is still at Al Abraq Airport, 12 hours after landing. The chartered ValueJet aircraft was, strangely and in a dangerous manner, diverted to the small airport just as the pilot was completing his approach to Benghazi Airport.
“Players have resolved not to play the match any longer, and NFF officials are making plans to fly the team back home.”
The match slated for Tuesday is the fourth match the country will play in their quest to secure a ticket to participate in the next edition of AFCON in Morocco next year.
SaharaReporters on Sunday night reported how the team had been stranded at the Libyan airport for hours.
SaharaReporters learned that the players and coaches were stranded because Libyan authorities had diverted the flight the team had earlier booked to take them to Benghazi, a venue for their upcoming African Cup of Nations qualifying match against the North African team.
“Even our pilot who is Tunisian who wasn't locked in like a hostage came back hours later. He was told in every nearby hotel they would only accept him and none of the Nigerian air crew members. Are we still talking about international football?” Troost-Ekong added.
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