Ebola Outbreak Fears: Congo World Cup squad ordered to isolate before US entry — official
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s World Cup squad has been instructed to undergo a 21-day isolation period before being allowed entry into the United States, following concerns over an ongoing Ebola outbreak in the country, authorities said on Friday.
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup, told ESPN that US authorities had informed FIFA, the Congolese national team, and the government in Kinshasa that the players must remain in a controlled “bubble” currently in Belgium, where they are in training.
“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.
He added that failure to comply with the directive could jeopardise the team’s participation in the tournament.
“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,” he said.
“We want to make sure that there is nothing that’s going to come in or near our borders here on this,” Giuliani added.
In a separate statement sent to AFP by the US Department of Homeland Security, Giuliani stressed that the top priority was the safety of Americans, participating teams, and fans.
US officials had earlier indicated that the Congolese squad would be exempt from a broader travel restriction temporarily affecting non-citizens who had recently been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan within 21 days.
Giuliani, however, urged strict compliance with health precautions.
“We encourage the team to protect their players from unnecessary exposure and maintain the integrity of their bubble to ensure they are able to participate in the tournament,” he said.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are currently 82 confirmed Ebola cases and seven confirmed deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo, alongside hundreds of suspected infections.
The outbreak is linked to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which no approved vaccine or treatment currently exists.
The DR Congo national team has qualified for the World Cup for only the second time in its history, following their debut appearance in 1974 when the country was known as Zaire.
The team is expected to be based in Houston for the tournament and will open their Group K campaign against Portugal on June 17.