“Really a war zone”- Benin captain Steve Mounie decries foul treatment in Libya, weeks after Super Eagles suffered similar fate

Benin captain Steve Mounie has lamented the treatment he and his teammates suffered when they traveled to Libya for their final game of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, Soccernet.ng reports.

In the past two months, Libya has proved to be a horrific destination for visiting countries in CAF competitions.

During the last international break last month, they visited Nigeria for the first leg of their 2025 AFCON Qualifiers. Then, just three days later, the Super Eagles traveled there for the return leg of the fixture.

Unfortunately, it turned out to be a disaster. Libyan authorities diverted the Super Eagles’ flight to a deserted airport. The players were left unattended to and had to stay in the airport during to the volatile nature of the country.

The Nigerian officials even made efforts to leave, and some players’ clubs offered to send private jets to rescue the team, but Libyan authorities stifled their efforts.

Eventually, after over 17 hours in that situation, the Super Eagles were able to make their way out of Libya. The game was later canceled, and after CAF’s disciplinary arm sat on the issue, Libya were fined, while three goals and three points were awarded to Nigeria.

Now, just four weeks after that incident, Libya have treated another visiting county in a similar manner. Their last game was against Benin at the Tripoli International Stadium.

The fixture was a winner takes all, as Libya were on four points, while Benin were on seven. A winner for either side could send them to the 2025 AFCON, pending the result of Nigeria’s game against Rwanda.

The game eventually ended goalless, and that did not sit well with Libyan fans, as the result was not good enough for them to qualify for next year’s AFCON.

The fans then descended on Beninoise players and staff, and beat them up before they could find their way to the team bus. Coach Gernot Rohr even suffered injuries and had to be treated in the team bus.

Gernot Rohr, former #SuperEagles coach & present coach of Benin Republic was punched in the face along with other members of the Benin backroom staff by Libyan police last night.
Benin picked up the AFCON 2025 qualification ticket above Libya and Rwanda with a draw in Tripoli pic.twitter.com/vaSIpgZWlo

— Abiola Shodiya (@AbiolaAbdul) November 19, 2024

Following the event, Benin captain Steve Mounie has decried the treatment he and teammates suffered.

“It wasn’t easy. It was really a war zone. This Libyan team, this country and its supporters didn’t respect us at the start of the match. They whistled our national anthem, and we made it personal” Mounie said.

“We wanted to come out of this match with qualification. We did it with difficulty. Benin is at the CAN 2025. We can be proud of what we have achieved with this group of young players.

As it stands, CAF is yet to speak on the matter, but it expected that they will get a substantial punishment in the coming weeks.