DR Congo has been mandated to undergo a 21-day isolation period prior to their entry into the United States for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup due to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the region. This measure has been implemented to ensure the safety of participants and the general public.
Reports indicate that U.S. authorities have communicated this requirement to FIFA, the Congolese Football Federation, and several government officials in Kinshasa. The team is currently preparing for the tournament while remaining inside a controlled training environment in Belgium.
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup, confirmed this decision during an interview with ESPN. He emphasized the importance of maintaining the integrity of the isolation bubble.
“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 11th,” Giuliani told ESPN.
“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.
“We want to make sure that there is nothing that’s going to come in or near our borders here on this,” Giuliani added.