The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) football team sets its sights on clinching their third star at the upcoming 2023 African Nations Championship, which is scheduled to take place in the Ivory Coast.
The Ivory Coast will host the 34th edition of this most significant continental event in Africa, from January 13th to February 11th.
The DRC team has been drawn into Group 6, alongside Morocco, Zambia, and Tanzania.
Ranked at 67th in FIFA’s November rankings, the “Leopards'” best standing was 28th, a spot they held in August 2017.
Il y a 40 ans jour pour jour les léopards du Zaïre étaient champion d'Afrique en Égypte. @LaTeam243 pic.twitter.com/hnuFLBALFM
— Leopard Leader Foot (@leopard243) March 14, 2016
Establishment
The DRC Football Association was founded in 1919 and became a member of FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) and CAF (Confederation of African Football) in 1964.
The team’s name has changed several times in the past, participating as Belgian Congo (1948–1960), Congo-Léopoldville (1960–1963), and Congo-Kinshasa (1963–1971), finally becoming Zaire (1971-1997).
The DRC played its first international match in 1948 as Belgian Congo, winning 3-2 against the team from Northern Rhodesia.
Their first official match was against Mauritania on April 11th, 1963, where they seized a resounding 6-0 victory.
World Cup
In 1974, the Congo DRC team not only made a stunning impression on the African scene but also paved their way to the global football arena for the first time in history when they reached the World Cup finals.
Hosted by Germany, the team, then named “Zaire,” was placed in a challenging group alongside Scotland, Yugoslavia, and Brazil. They endured a catastrophic performance, losing to Scotland with two goals, to Yugoslavia with a staggering nine goals, and to Brazil with a resounding three-nil.
African Nations Championship Appearances
The “Leopards” participated in the African Nations Championship 19 times, with their first appearance in 1965 and winning the trophy twice in 1968 as Congo Kinshasa and in 1974 as Zaire.
#CAN-1968: Les anciens gloires du football du Congo sont abandonnés par leurs pays.
Vainqueur de la coupe d'Afrique des Nations en 1968, Nicodème Kabamba était décédé le 28/02/2020 et jusqu'à présent son corps se retrouve tjr à la morgue faut de l'argent. pic.twitter.com/XXXoFWv06R
— juvin mbaya🇨🇩 (@JuvinMbaya) April 27, 2020
- 1965 Edition in Tunisia: Exited the tournament in the first round.
- 1968 Edition in Ethiopia: Crowned champions after defeating Ghana in the final with a lone goal.
- 1970 Edition in Sudan: Exited the tournament in the first round.
- 1972 Finals in Cameroon: Finished in fourth place, after losing to Cameroon in the third-place match.
- 1974 in Egypt: Claimed their second title after tying Zambia 2-2 in the final, then in the replayed match (as per the old tournament system), they won 2-0 and clinched the African Nations Cup for the second time.
Caire, Stade Nasser, Jeudi 14 mars 1974
~~~~~
Les Léopards du Zaïre remporté la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations pour la 2ème fois en battant la Zambie de 2 buts à zéro, dans une finale rejouée. @UEenRDC @AmbassadorIleka @SORAZIZ @exxousia @RogerShimba @musema_kweli @LUMUMBAJj pic.twitter.com/FjsBiIaMPo— MémoireRDC🇨🇩 (@giressbaggothy) November 21, 2021
CE JOUR-LA… 14 mars 1974, les Léopards du Zaïre remportent la CAN '74, en Egypte. Pierre Ndaye Mulamba inscrit un doublé (30ème et 76ème) face à la Zambie et offre au Zaïre son 2è trophée dans la compétition, après celui de 1968 (quand le pays s'appelait encore Congo-Kinshasa). pic.twitter.com/17ui5Bgs1j
— Benjamin Babunga Watuna (@benbabunga) March 14, 2022
Le record de buts inscrits sur une édition de Coupe d'Afrique des Nations est détenu par Pierre Ndaye Mulamba 🇨🇩, il a inscrits 9 buts en 6 matchs lors de la CAN 1974 remportée par les Léopards du Zaïre (actuel RD Congo 🇨🇩) en Égypte 🇪🇬. https://t.co/g4Lmzo38SX pic.twitter.com/GypbV2pjaa
— 👨🏿🚀 Ꮥ.Ꮶ. ➏ 🚀 (@SKR_250) January 17, 2022
- 1976 Edition in Ethiopia: The team was eliminated in the first round.
- 1988 Edition in Morocco: Exited the tournament in the first round.
- 1992 Edition in Senegal: Reached the quarterfinals but lost to Nigeria.
- 1994 Edition in Tunisia: Qualified for the quarterfinals once again and lost to Nigeria.
- 1996 Edition in South Africa: Reached the quarterfinals and lost to Ghana.
Le pays tourne une nouvelle page de son Histoire en 1997 avec la fin de règne de Mobutu et se renomme République Démocratique du Congo.
Comme un symbole, les "Léopards" brillent de nouveau et terminent 3ème de la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations 1998.
🌐FIN⚽🐆 pic.twitter.com/H8mHJfk3Sm
— FC Geopolitics (@FCGeopolitics) November 24, 2022
- 1998 Edition in Burkina Faso: Secured third place after defeating Burkina Faso with penalty kicks 4-1 in the semi-final.
- 2000 Edition in Ghana and Nigeria: Eliminated in the first round.
- 2002 Edition in Mali: Knocked out in the quarterfinals by Senegal.
- 2004 Edition in Tunisia: Exited in the first round.
- 2006 Edition in Egypt: Eliminated in the quarterfinals by the Egyptian team with a 1-4 loss.
- 2013 Edition in South Africa: Exited in the group stages.
🗓️ 2015
⚽ Congo Derby 🇨🇬 🆚 🇨🇩
🏆 Quarterfinals #TotalAFCONRemember when the Leopards made that comeback in just 25 minutes, scoring 4 goals? 🤯#MondayMotivation
— CAF – FR (@caf_online_FR) May 25, 2020
- 2015 Edition in Equatorial Guinea: The Leopards finished third after winning against Equatorial Guinea in the penalty shootout (4-2) in the third-place match, which ended in a stalemate.
- 2017 Edition in Gabon: Lost in the quarterfinals to Ghana 1-2.
- 2019 Edition in Egypt: Exited in the last sixteen against Madagascar in a penalty shootout.
DR CONGO
2x Winners
2017: Bronze
The Leopards arrive in Egypt with renewed vigor and unfinished business after finishing 3rd in Gabon. Can Yannick Bolasie, Marcel Tisserand, Chancel Mbemba, and co. hand long-serving coach Florent Ibenge the trophy he craves? #TotalAFCON2019— #AFCON_Watch (@AFCON_Watch) June 17, 2019
Current Team Stars:
- Chancel Mbemba (team captain and Marseille player).
- Gédéon Kalulu (Lorient player).
- Cedric Bakambu (Galatasaray player).
- Yoane Wissa (Brentford player).
- Silas Wamangituka (Stuttgart player).
- Idriss Kameni (Watford player).
Dieumerci Mbokani is the team’s top scorer with 22 goals, with Bakambu second at 16 goals. The most-capped Leopard is Issama Mpeko, with 88 international appearances.
#Sport: Hector Cuper, the national coach of the senior DR Congo team, is expected this Tuesday, May 3rd, 2022 in #Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, announces the Congolese Football Federation this Monday, May 2nd, 2022 for an evaluation.
— Israël Mutombo (@IsralMutombo11) May 2, 2022
Team Coach
In May 2021, the DRC Football Federation announced the appointment of Argentine Hector Cuper as the national team coach.
This marks the fourth time Cuper has taken charge of a national team following stints with Georgia (2008–2009), Egypt (2015–2018), and Uzbekistan (2018–2019).
🎙️ On March 20, 2023, Cédric Bakambu stated, “The DRC will not miss this CAN!”.
At that time, the Leopards 🐆 were last with 0 points out of a possible 6. You know what happened next! 📝
— Congolese Football News (@CongoleseFNews) September 13, 2023
DRC’s Matches in Ivory Coast
Wednesday, January 17: DR Congo x Zambia (Stade Laurent Pokou).
Sunday, January 21: Morocco x DR Congo (Stade Laurent Pokou).
Wednesday, January 24: Tanzania x DR Congo (Stadium Amadou Ahouanou Konan).
