The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have no plans to alter their World Cup preparations despite a directive from the United States requiring the national team to undergo a 21-day isolation period before entering the country.
US Mandates Isolation for DRC Squad
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup, informed ESPN that US officials have communicated to FIFA, the DRC team, and the government in Kinshasa that the squad must remain in a controlled bubble in Belgium, where they are currently training, due to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the African nation.
“We’ve been very clear to Congo that they should maintain the integrity of their bubble for 21 days before they can then come to Houston on June 11th,” Giuliani stated. “We’ve made it very clear to the Congo government as well, that they need to maintain that bubble or they risk not being able to travel to the United States. We cannot be any clearer. We want to make sure there is nothing that’s going to come in or near our borders.”
In a separate statement to AFP from the US Department of Homeland Security, Giuliani emphasized that the priority is the “safety and security of the American people, participating teams, and millions of fans.”
US officials confirmed this week that the DRC squad would be exempt from a travel ban that temporarily bars entry to non-Americans who have been in the DRC, Uganda, or South Sudan within the previous 21 days.
“We encourage the team to protect their players from unneeded exposure and maintain the integrity of their bubble to ensure that they are able to participate in the tournament,” Giuliani added.
DRC Maintains Schedule
However, a DRC team spokesperson insisted there is no change to their schedule, which includes a friendly against Denmark in Liège on 3 June and another against Chile in Cádiz six days later. “We have kept our training programme. No player in the squad has come from DRC,” the official said.
The entire squad consists of players based outside the DRC, predominantly in Europe, along with coach Sébastien Desabre. A few team officials arrived at the training camp in Belgium from the DRC this week. The team had planned a three-day trip to Kinshasa next week for a celebratory send-off before heading to their first World Cup in 52 years, but that event has been canceled.
Ebola Outbreak Concerns
The World Health Organization on Friday raised the risk level of the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola to “very high” in the DRC, noting that there are no approved vaccines or treatments for this strain. The outbreak has been declared an emergency of international concern in both the DRC and neighboring Uganda. WHO reported 82 confirmed cases and seven confirmed deaths in the DRC, along with nearly 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths.
DRC have qualified for the World Cup for only the second time, having previously participated in 1974 when the country was known as Zaire. They plan to be based in Houston during the tournament, where they will play their first Group K match on 17 June against Portugal.
