Footballers can usually enjoy numerous comforts when they travel. In the case of the Nigerian national football team, however, nothing goes as planned. Was it an act of revenge by the Libyan hosts?
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- Nigeria's national football team has experienced a grotesque odyssey.
- Before the scheduled international match in Libya, the "Super Eagles" were apparently stranded for many hours at an airport around 200 kilometers away from the actual venue in Benghazi.
- The action was apparently orchestrated by the hosts.
On Friday, Nigeria played at home against Libya in the qualifiers for the Africa Cup 2025 and won the game 1:0. Nigeria traveled to Libya for the second leg on Sunday. However, instead of Benghazi, where the match was due to take place on Tuesday evening, the flight was diverted at the last minute to Al Abaq Airport - several hours' drive from the planned destination. A piquant fact: the national teams of Ghana and Sudan, who are also playing each other in Benghazi on Tuesday, are said to have landed in the coastal city on schedule, according to Bild.
Then the real ordeal begins, as "L'Équipe" explains. The players are said to have been locked inside the hall, with the outside doors apparently closed. The players tried to sleep on hard benches or on the floor. According to the Nigerian sports ministry, their delegation was "more than 15 hours without drinks, without food and in a mosquito-infested world with a ban on going out by the Libyan authorities".
"We were at the airport for almost 13 hours - without food, no wifi and no place to sleep," complains Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface on X. His teammate William Troost-Ekong emphasizes on social media: "Over 12 hours in a deserted airport in Libya after our plane was diverted on approach. The Libyan government revoked our authorized landing in Benghazi for no reason. They locked the gates of the airport and left us without a phone line, food or drink. All just to play mind games."
Team fears for their safety
They had asked the Nigerian government to intervene. As captain, he and the team had decided that they would not play the game. "Let them have the points," he says on X.
"We won't accept going anywhere by car, because even with security it's not safe. We can only imagine what the hotel or the food would be like if we continue our journey," explains Troost-Ekong. According to a video from Boniface, old school buses without air conditioning were planned as a means of transportation.
Delegation member Victor Ikpeba (formerly active with BVB, among others) calls on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to take tough action. He even demands the exclusion from the "high-risk country" Libya. "We were locked up like hostages in a deserted airport for more than 10 hours," summarizes Ikpeba (via Sport1).
Libya washes its hands in innocence
The Libyan FA responded with a statement on Monday afternoon. "We are deeply concerned about the latest reports. We regret the inconvenience caused, but must point out that such incidents may occur due to routine air traffic control protocols, security checks or logistical challenges in international air traffic."
Delays or detour are regrettable, but not unusual. "We have the utmost respect for our Nigerian colleagues and would like to assure them that the detour of their flight was not intentional."
The explanation is probably only a pretext. The Libyan delegation is said to have shown dissatisfaction with the hospitality in the first leg. The Libyan team had to wait several hours for a shuttle bus. The retaliation was obviously planned. The treatment of the Nigeria professionals has clearly left its mark: "It's getting scary here. We just want to go back to our country," tweeted Boniface. At least the drama ended later. The team's plane was finally refueled and the Nigerian delegation returned home.
