Nigeria’s players say they will boycott their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Libya on Tuesday after being stranded at an airport overnight.
The Super Eagles squad were due to land in Benghazi on Sunday but their plane was instead diverted to Al Abraq, which is about 230km away from their intended destination.
A Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) official said the travelling contingent were “completely abandoned” and then locked inside the airport building after making arrangements to leave.
“As the captain together with the team we have decided that we will not play this game,” centre-back William Troost-Ekong said in a post on X.
“At this point we have called for our Nigerian government to intervene and rescue us.
“I’ve experienced stuff before playing away in Africa but this is disgraceful behaviour.”
The Libyan Football Federation (LFF) said it was “deeply concerned” by reports about the situation experienced by the travelling side but denied suggestions of foul play.
“We have the utmost respect for our Nigerian counterparts and want to reassure them that the diversion of their flight was not intentional,” it said.
The LFF added that disruptions can occur from routine air traffic protocols, security checks or other logistical challenges and said it hoped the misunderstanding “can be resolved with understanding and goodwill”.
The Confederation of African Football has been contacted for comment.
The situation follows Libya’s complaints of alleged hostile treatment during their visit to Nigeria for the reverse fixture in Uyo last Friday.
Libyan officials claimed they were rerouted to Port Harcourt and also accused the Nigerians of not providing them a bus to cover the 130km journey to Uyo, leaving them stranded for hours.
