A senior US State Department official said Washington will ensure the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) national soccer team is allowed entry to attend the World Cup, despite an ongoing ban related to the Ebola outbreak.
“We expect the DRC team to be able to participate in the World Cup,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
Currently, the US has barred non-citizens who have been in the DRC, Uganda, or South Sudan within the past 21 days from entering the country, due to concerns over a deadly Ebola outbreak.
The US official added that the DRC team—the only team among the three countries to qualify for the biggest soccer tournament—has been training in Europe, so they may not be affected by the ban. However, if they were actually in the DRC within the previous 21 days, they would still undergo the same strict screening process as returning US citizens.
“We are working to bring them through the same screening and quarantine process as returning US citizens and legal residents,” the official said.
The official also noted that this exception does not apply to ordinary DRC fans who wish to travel to the US to support their team.
The DRC team will begin its World Cup campaign in Texas, facing Portugal on June 17.
