The Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) national football team has announced it will not alter its preparations for the 2026 World Cup finals, after the United States — a co-host of the tournament — demanded the team undergo a 21-day quarantine before entering the country due to Ebola concerns. A team official confirmed the information to the press.
Andrew Giuliani, Executive Director of the White House World Cup Task Force, confirmed on May 22 that the Congolese delegation must maintain a 'bubble' throughout its training camp in Belgium and complete a 21-day quarantine, or else risk being denied entry. The statement came after a deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in the Central African nation.
According to the match schedule, the DR Congo team will be based in Houston (USA) and play its opening Group K match against Portugal on June 17, then face Colombia on June 23 in Guadalajara (Mexico), and Uzbekistan on June 27 in Atlanta.
'We made it very clear to Congo that they must maintain the integrity of the bubble for 21 days before arriving in Houston on June 11,' Giuliani told ESPN on May 23. 'We also made it clear to the Congolese government that if they do not maintain the bubble, they risk not being able to come to the United States. We couldn't be more explicit.'
However, a spokesperson for the DR Congo team said that at this point, the schedule remains unchanged. The team still plans to play a friendly against Denmark in Liege, Belgium, on June 3 and face Chile in Cadiz, Spain, on June 9.
'We are keeping up our training program. None of the players in the squad are from DR Congo,' the official said. All players currently ply their trade abroad, mainly in Europe, including coach Sebastien Desabre. A few team officials arrived at the training camp in Belgium earlier this week.
The team had planned a three-day trip to Kinshasa next week for a send-off before heading to the World Cup — their first appearance in 52 years — but that trip has been canceled.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on May 22 raised the risk assessment for the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola to 'very high' in DR Congo and declared the outbreak in the country and neighboring Uganda a public health emergency of international concern. Nearly 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths from Ebola have been reported in the current outbreak in DR Congo.
