TheCable

Enyimba FC have been eliminated from the maiden edition of the African Football League (AFL). 

The 2023 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) champions were defeated 4-0 on aggregate by Wydad Casablanca in the competition’s quarter-final.

Enyimba had lost 1-0 at home to the Morrocan club on Sunday, and the People’s Elephant failed to overturn the result in the return leg at the Stade Mohamed V in Casablanca on Thursday.

Goals from Ayoub El Almoud, Jamal Harkass and Yahia Allah put the game beyond Enyimba even before the halftime break.

The AFL is a new continental competition created by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) with support from FIFA.

Eight clubs were selected to participate in the money-spinning competition. The teams will play in a knockout format consisting of a quarter-final, semi-final and final.

Enyimba’s continental pedigree led to its selection as the sole representative from Nigeria.

The winners of the inaugural AFL will receive a prize of $4 million.

The runner-up will get $2.8 million, the two semi-finalists will each get $1.7 million, and the quarter-finalists will each earn $900,000.

The exit from the competition is the second time Enyimba would fail to pull its weight on the continent this season. The club was earlier eliminated by Al-Ahly Benghazi in the first qualifying round of the CAF Champions League.