2026 WCQ: South Sudan and Sudan officials sort out their differences

Sudan and South Sudan football officials have solved their differences before Tuesday's derby game in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying. The two teams will meet in action from Group B hosted by Sudan in Benghazi, Libya.

The South Sudan national team delegation were stranded at the Benghazi airport for more than four hours as they blamed the host team for their mistreatment. Bright Stars players were seen sleeping on chairs after arriving from Cairo.

Sudan Football Association (SFA) delegates should have welcomed the South Sudan national side but they were not present at the airport. The South Sudan Football Association (SSFA) appealed to CAF and FIFA in an open letter as tension heightened between the two football administrations.

Earlier today the delegation head of the Sudan national side, Mutasim Abdulsalam, visited the South Sudan national side and explained what went wrong. Both parties have solved their differences as they agreed to defuse the tension, seen in the photo above posted by the SFA on their social media in the last hour. A letter was also released in which the SFA apologized to their South Sudanese counterparts.

Sudan hosts South Sudan on Tuesday. It will be their fourth meeting since South Sudan gained independence in 2011. Sudan won the first game between the two teams back in June, a 3-0 result in the South Sudanese capital of Juba.