The Super Eagles will have another historic outing when they play away to Poland in an international friendly on June 3rd, as the encounter is billed to take place in the East European nation’s most iconic stadium, which can take 58,580 spectators.
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Sports247 gathered that the match in Warsaw is part of an upcoming busy schedule that will see the Eagles battle India and Jamaica at the 2026 Unity Cup in London next month, after which they will play Portugal and Poland in June.
While the Super Eagles’ clash with Portugal on June 10th is obviously the most glamourous of the upcoming friendly games, their battle with Poland seven days earlier holds an exciting attraction in terms of history, emotions and structures.
Memories would surely come alive about the exploits of former Doyin Babes FC of Ilorin and Jasper United of Nnewi attacker, Emmanuel Olisadebe, who played for Poland at Korea/Japan 2002 World Cup after switching nationality.
Olisadebe’s name is surely bound to come up in many pre-match debates and analyses heading into this game billed to take place at PGE Narodowy Stadium, which happens to be the largest football arena in Poland.
Popularly called ‘Oli,’ the indigene of Ibusa in Delta State scored 11 international goals in 25 caps for Poland between 2000 and 2004, during which he emerged as Polish Footballer of the Year 2001, but got a single vote in the world best award.
He scored Poland’s first goal in a 3-1 victory over USA in their last group match of the 2002 Mundial, but they did not reach the second round and, though he retired in 2012 then returned to Nigeria, he will be a talking point on June 3rd at Narodowy Stadium.
The arena, which had the name of its financier, Kazimierz Górski added in 2021, has a retractable roof and is the home of Poland’s national team, with its open-shut cover inspired by the cable system of Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt, Germany.
PGE Narodowy Stadium is equipped with a heated pitch, training ground, façade lighting and underground parking, which makes it a multi-purpose venue that can host sporting events, concerts, cultural shows and conferences.
It is located on the site of the former 10th-Anniversary Stadium, at Zieleniecka Avenue in Praga Południe district, where its construction started in 2008, ended in November 2011 and has been known as PGE Narodowy for sponsorship reasons since 2015.
The official stadium opening took place on January 19th, 2012 and, incidentally, the first match played there was on February 29th, 2012, when Poland’s national team played a goalless draw with Portugal in front of a capacity crowd.
A similar atmosphere will be expected when the Super Eagles enter the arena on June 3rd, amidst memories of how the stadium also played host to five matches (including a semi-final fixture) of Euro 2012 co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine.
A statement by Nigeria Football Federation added, “NFF’s FIFA Match Agent, Jairo Pachon of Eurodata Sport, confirmed on Thursday that the clash with Poland will take place at the PGE Narodowy Stadium in the country’s capital, Warsaw.
“The clash with Portugal will take place on 10th June, with a venue to be announced in the coming days. The game against Seleção das Quinas will be the last game for the hosts before they take part in this summer’s FIFA World Cup.
“The Super Eagles, are also scheduled to defend their crown at this year’s Unity Cup Tournament in London, taking place 26th-30th May (as three-time African champions Nigeria are looking forward to a very exciting summer).”
