When sport, crisis overlap: DRC's World Cup rise amid Ebola upsurge

Healthcare workers disinfect a stretcher after transporting a patient suffering from the Ebola virus disease in Bunia, Ituri, in the east of the DRC on June 23, 2026, with the original FIFA World Cup trophy on the side. [Courtesy]

Thousands of kilometres separate Ebola isolation wards in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from the World Cup stadiums in the US, yet both are shaping the country’s global story.

In Ituri, health workers are racing against time to trace Ebola contacts, contain a worsening outbreak and care for families displaced by decades of conflict.

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, another group of Congolese is fighting a very different battle. The Leopards have become one of the stories of the FIFA World Cup, defeating Uzbekistan 3-1 in their final Group K match to progress to the knockout stages, carrying with them the hopes of millions back home as their country confronts one of its most serious public health emergencies in years.

Their journey to the tournament has been anything but ordinary. 

Strict Ebola-related travel measures meant the squad had to quarantine in Belgium before travelling to the US after restrictions were imposed on travellers arriving from the DRC. Yet even as the outbreak continues to claim lives, football has endured.

It is a familiar story.

From SARS to Ebola, Zika and Covid-19, international sport has repeatedly been forced to navigate disease outbreaks that threatened to derail some of the world’s biggest sporting events.

Rather than stopping, sport has consistently adapted through science, surveillance and carefully coordinated public health measures.

For DRC coach Sebastien Desabre, every result has become far more than football. “We’re happy to have secured the first point for Congo. We’ve had a strong run and we can keep the dream and the story alive for all Congolese,” Desabre told the AFP ahead of the decisive match. “Our players are ready to rise to the challenge.” 

While the national team celebrates progression on football’s biggest stage, health authorities back home are confronting an epidemic that continues to expand.

According to the DRC National Public Health Institute, the Ebola outbreak declared on May 15 has now infected more than 1,000 people and killed over 300, making it one of the country’s deadliest recent outbreaks.

The three hardest-hit provinces—Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu — have endured decades of armed conflict and repeated displacement, making disease surveillance, contact tracing and treatment significantly more challenging.

More than 91 per cent of infections have been recorded in Ituri’s provincial capital, Bunia, while healthcare facilities continue to struggle with shortages of protective equipment, chlorine and isolation capacity.

Over 78 healthcare workers have been infected and 18 of them have died.

The outbreak has already crossed borders. Uganda has confirmed 20 cases, including two deaths, most involving Congolese nationals.

Last week, France confirmed the first case detected outside Africa after a humanitarian doctor working in the DRC became ill after boarding a commercial flight from Kinshasa.

History suggests this is not the first-time sport has had to coexist with a public health emergency.

The first major disruption came in 2003 when the SARS outbreak forced FIFA to move the Women’s World Cup from China to the US.

Eleven years later, as West Africa battled the worst Ebola epidemic in history, Brazil hosted the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The tournament proceeded successfully. 

Just two years later, Brazil again found itself under the global spotlight during the Zika virus epidemic. And more recently, the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d’Ivoire was staged successfully despite regional cholera outbreaks.