The Super Eagles of Nigeria have finally landed safely in Uyo ahead of their crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against the Benin Republic scheduled for Tuesday.
Their arrival was confirmed on Sunday through a post shared on the official X (formerly Twitter) handle of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF). According to the update, the team touched down at the Victor Attah International Airport, Uyo, at exactly 8:05 a.m. local time.
The NFF wrote, “The @NGSuperEagles have finally arrived Uyo after a delay in Luanda, Angola due to issues with the aircraft conveying them back home after the win over Lesotho. Now to get one over Benin! Yes. We can.”
The update follows a tense 24-hour delay caused by a mid-air emergency that forced the team’s ValueJet aircraft to make an emergency landing in Luanda, Angola, on Saturday. The technical fault occurred shortly after the plane took off following a refuelling stop.
The same aircraft had earlier flown part of the team’s delegation to Polokwane on Thursday night, arriving in South Africa on Friday morning. According to the NFF, the emergency landing was necessitated by a cracked windscreen that developed mid-air.
“However, after a routine refuelling stop in Luanda, Angola (where the plane also stopped to refuel on Thursday night, and where the same plane had stopped to refuel to and from Bloemfontein in South Africa for the Matchday 8 encounter between the Super Eagles and the Bafana Bafana last month).
“The aircraft suffered a cracked windscreen mid-air after take-off, and the pilot did well to guide the aeroplane safely back to the airport in Luanda,” the NFF said.
The Federation added that arrangements were promptly made for another aircraft to depart from Lagos and transport the team safely to Uyo after the incident.
What you should know
Nigeria’s Super Eagles arrived in Uyo on Sunday morning after a 24-hour delay caused by a cracked windscreen that forced an emergency landing in Angola.
All players and officials were safe, and the NFF coordinated swiftly to arrange another aircraft to complete their journey.
