The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced that the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match between Nigeria and Libya, originally scheduled for October 15, will not be held.
In a statement released on Tuesday afternoon, the African football governing body said the ongoing rift between both nations “will be referred to the competent CAF bodies”.
“The TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 Qualifier fixture between Libya and Nigeria will not take place as scheduled tonight,” the statement reads.
“The matter will be referred to the competent CAF bodies.”
However, the continent’s administrative and controlling body for football did not indicate whether the match was cancelled or postponed.
The announcement comes on the back of ongoing tensions between the two countries’ football federations.
The Super Eagles’ flight arrived at Al-Abraq airport on Sunday for their AFCON qualifying match against Libya, which was scheduled to take place at the Martyrs of February Stadium in Benina, Benghazi.
However, the Nigerian players and coaching staff were stranded at Al-Abraq airport for over 20 hours without access to food or drinks.
On Monday morning, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announced the team’s withdrawal from the qualifier and instructed the Super Eagles to return home. The team later arrived back in Kano from Libya.
In response, the Libyan Football Federation (LFF) stated that the flight diversion experienced by the Nigerian team was not “intentional.” The LFF denied any accusations of foul play or sabotage, pointing out that their own team had faced a similar situation in Nigeria.
The Libyan FA also vowed to take “all necessary legal measures” to protect the interests of their national team.
CAF, the governing body of African football, has said it is investigating the “disturbing” incident.
