2026 World Cup: Congolese national team cancels training camp due to Ebola
A health crisis is hitting Congo's preparations for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Written by: Mohammed Omran
A representative of the Democratic Republic of Congo's national football team, a country suffering from an outbreak Ebola virusThe team has cancelled a phase of its home training camp scheduled to take place before the start of the World Cup, according to a statement made to AFP by one of the team's representatives.
A health crisis is hitting Congo's preparations for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
The World Health Organization on Sunday issued an international health alert to deal with the 17th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a vast Central African country with a population of over 100 million, where the eastern provinces, which are hard to reach by land and plagued by violence from armed groups, are being battered.
According to the World Health Organization, the outbreak is already suspected to have caused 139 deaths out of nearly 600 possible cases, and it may continue, but the risk of a pandemic is considered “low”.
Congo national team suspends training camp due to Ebola fears
The United States, which is co-hosting the World Cup with Canada and Mexico (June 11-July 19), announced on Monday that it was tightening health controls at its borders to combat the Ebola virus by barring entry to foreign nationals who had traveled to Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, or South Sudan in the past 21 days.
A U.S. official explained on Tuesday that the Congolese team had already trained in Europe, and therefore might not meet these rejection criteria.
A press officer for the Congolese national team told AFP that the team's training camp "was supposed to start in Kinshasa for three days," but was "moved" to Belgium, without specifying whether the decision was made because of the Ebola epidemic, adding: "No player residing in the country was selected" for the national team.
The “Tigers” qualified for the World Cup by defeating Jamaica (1-0) in a play-off match between the continents on March 31. This is a historic second qualification for the country and the players, led by French coach Sebastien Desabre, after the 1974 World Cup played by Zaire.
The Democratic Republic of Congo will have to face Colombia, Portugal and Uzbekistan in the group stage of the World Cup.
The World Health Organization (WHO) noted that the risk of an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is “high” for Central Africa but “low” globally, and believes the epidemic may have emerged “several months ago.”.
