The Democratic Republic of Congo has appealed to FIFA to reimburse supporters who bought World Cup tickets, after a recent Ebola outbreak has severely limited travel to the United States.
The World Cup gets underway in just 16 days, with millions of fans anticipated to descend upon the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, creating scheduling conflicts with other major sporting events across North America. Political complications have added to the uncertainty, with Iran now set to be headquartered in Mexico, while U.S. visas remain unresolved.
Meanwhile, an Ebola outbreak has taken hold across Africa, with authorities reporting more than 900 suspected cases and 223 projected fatalities. The U.S. has swiftly sealed its borders to specific nations across central and East Africa, directly impacting DR Congo ahead of the tournament, as per
FIFA confirmed to the BBC that it would review DR Congo’s request, stating it “will look into it in due course.” Ticket prices for the FIFA World Cup in North America are the highest ever recorded, with some costing seven times as much as the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
The official FIFA resale platform has also driven up costs, with tickets listed for over $1 million following its launch. Several DR Congo residents have put their financial security on the line to follow the national team at the World Cup, with the 52-year absence from the tournament coming to an end this summer.
DR Congo faces Portugal in the group opener in Houston on June 11, before taking on Colombia and Uzbekistan. The second match against Colombia will be held in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, which could prompt fans to redirect their travel plans south of the U.S. border.
The DR Congo national team has also been affected by the travel restrictions, despite the majority of their players competing across Europe and beyond Africa. Team officials based in DR Congo have already departed the country and are currently serving a 21-day quarantine.
The national team was compelled to cancel a pre-World Cup training camp, instead relocating to Belgium to prepare ahead of a friendly against Denmark on June 3. Congo will then take on Chile in Spain on June 9.
Andrew Giuliani, the White House Task Force director for the World Cup, confirmed that the Belgian training bubble must remain intact. “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 11,” Giuliani said.
“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.”