The Democratic Republic of Congo’s football team, whose preparation was affected by the Ebola outbreak in the country, has received permission to enter the United States to compete in the 2026 World Cup, a team player confirmed to an AFP journalist this Thursday (11).
The ‘Leopards’ delegation, for which US authorities had required a 21-day isolation period in a “health bubble” in Belgium before the tournament, landed in Houston at around 2:30 pm local time (4:30 pm Brasília time), on a flight from Paris.
They managed to leave the airport an hour later “without any problems”, according to right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who spoke to an AFP reporter at the scene.
“Everyone managed to get through. No one was denied entry,” added the West Ham player from England.
The African team had lost 2-1 to Chile on Tuesday, in Orléans, France, in their last friendly to prepare for the World Cup, held behind closed doors.
That match was originally scheduled to take place in La Línea de la Concepción, but the mayor of this southern Spanish city had banned the game due to fears over the Ebola epidemic affecting the Central African country.
The World Health Organization (WHO) issued an international health alert. The agency recorded more than 500 confirmed cases and dozens of deaths.
Despite the concern, Congolese football officials emphasize that none of the team’s players reside in the country.
Initially, a training period in Kinshasa was planned, but the trip ended up being canceled “in an effort to comply with all health recommendations”, Didier Budimbu Ntubuanga, Minister of Sports of the Democratic Republic of Congo, told AFP.
This politician had previously expressed confidence that the team would not face administrative problems upon arriving in the US, noting that the technical committee members residing in Kinshasa had already obtained their visas before the trip.
The Democratic Republic of Congo, who secured qualification by defeating Jamaica in an intercontinental play-off, will begin their 2026 World Cup campaign on June 17 against Portugal in Houston before facing Colombia and Uzbekistan.
His only previous participation in World Cups occurred in the 1974 edition, in West Germany, when the country was called Zaire.
