The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially awarded Nigeria three points and three goals for the abandoned Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Libya. This decision follows an investigation by the CAF Disciplinary Board into the match, which was scheduled for October 15 in Benghazi.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles had withdrawn from the game due to poor treatment by the Libyan hosts, who left the players and staff stranded at an abandoned airport for nearly a day.
In its ruling, CAF determined that the Libya Football Federation violated several regulations, specifically Article 31 of the African Cup of Nations Regulations and Articles 82 and 151 of the CAF Disciplinary Code.
The key points of the decision are as follows:
- The Libya Football Federation is found to have breached Article 31 of the African Cup of Nations Regulations and Articles 82 and 151 of the CAF Disciplinary Code.
- The match (No. 87) between Libya and Nigeria, originally scheduled for October 15, 2024, is declared lost by Libya for forfeit, with a final score of 3-0 in favor of Nigeria.
- The Libya Football Federation is fined USD 50,000, which must be paid within 60 days of receiving notification of this decision.
- All other motions or requests for further relief have been dismissed.
CAF President Patrice Motsepe has emphasized that the organization will not tolerate any form of unsportsmanlike conduct or unfair treatment in African football.
With this ruling, Nigeria now accumulates a total of ten points from four matches, maintaining its position at the top of Group D in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.