Sporting Lagos has publicly criticized the officiating in their Nigeria National League (NNL) match against Gateway United following several controversial decisions by referee Adebayo Qudus that led to their 2-1 defeat.

The match descended into chaos when Sporting Lagos striker Seun Akanji appeared to score a legitimate goal that was disallowed for offside by Qudus, despite his assistant referee indicating a goal by running toward the center circle. Adding to the controversy, Akanji was shown a yellow card after the disallowed goal.

Minutes later, when Akanji found the net again, referee Qudus blew his whistle mid-play and issued the striker a second yellow card, resulting in his dismissal from the match. Notably, the assistant referee did not flag either goal for offside.

Taking advantage of the situation, Gateway United equalized through a controversial penalty decision and eventually secured a 2-1 victory.

The incident has sparked outrage among Sporting Lagos officials, with board member Fola Olatunji-David expressing his frustration on social media platform X: "People should be out of jobs — and some people in jail — for what is going on in Nigerian football."

This controversy highlights ongoing concerns about officiating standards in Nigerian football leagues and raises questions about accountability in match officiating.

The Nigeria National League authorities have yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident or any potential disciplinary action against the referee.