Published On 5/23/2026
The American authorities imposed strict health measures on the Democratic Republic of the Congo national team before its expected participation in the 2026 World Cup, due to concerns related to the outbreak of the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
According to what was reported by ESPN, the White House asked the Congolese national team delegation to enter a “health bubble” for 21 days before allowing it to enter American territory in preparation for the tournament.
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Andrew Giuliani, responsible for the World Cup task force inside the White House, said that Washington informed the Congolese Federation of the necessity of maintaining complete isolation for the team until its arrival in Houston on June 11, stressing that any new player or individual who joins the mission will be required to undergo separate isolation.
The American official also warned that the appearance of any disease symptoms on one of the mission members could threaten the entire team’s participation in the tournament.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo national team is currently in a preparatory camp in Belgium, before heading to the United States, where Houston will be its headquarters during the tournament.
The Congolese national team plays in Group Eleven, along with Portugal, Colombia and Uzbekistan.
These measures come after the World Health Organization declared an international health alert due to a new outbreak of the Ebola virus in eastern Democratic Congo, where about 600 suspected cases of Ebola infection and 139 possible deaths were recorded, amid warnings of the rapid spread of the highly contagious virus.
