Chile Beat DR Congo in Warm-Up Moved Due to Ebola Outbreak

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Paris: The Democratic Republic of Congo's delayed preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup ended with a 2-1 loss to Chile in a friendly match shifted from Spain to France due to fears over the Ebola outbreak in the central African country.

The match was supposed to take place in Cádiz, Spain, but local authorities cancelled it after health officials expressed worries about hosting the Congolese squad during the outbreak. After several days of uncertainty, the game was transferred to Orléans, France, and held behind closed doors. Congolese officials emphasised that the squad had been practicing in Europe, and that the majority of the players were based at clubs outside of their own country.

Dario Osorio and Matías Sepúlveda's goals gave Chile the lead after a scoreless first half. Joris Kayembe scored a late goal for DR Congo, but the African team failed to make a comeback and lost their final friendly match before the World Cup.

DR Congo's historic comeback to the World Cup, their first since competing as Zaire in 1974, has been tarnished by the Ebola outbreak. The team trained in Belgium and Spain instead of Kinshasa, where they had earlier planned to have a pre-season camp. Additionally, players and officials must stay outside of the Democratic Republic of the Congo for 21 days and be free of symptoms before travelling to participate in the tournament, according to U.S. authorities.

DR Congo will now head to Houston, their World Cup base, where they are going to face Portugal on June 17 to start their Group K campaign. Later in the group stage, they will face Colombia and Uzbekistan.