{"id":1614,"date":"2025-12-19T13:09:07","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T13:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/?p=1614"},"modified":"2025-12-20T13:08:31","modified_gmt":"2025-12-20T13:08:31","slug":"back-to-the-future-drc-performances-at-the-africa-cup-of-nations-afcon-finals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/back-to-the-future-drc-performances-at-the-africa-cup-of-nations-afcon-finals\/","title":{"rendered":"Back to the Future: DRC Performances at the Africa Cup of Nations – AFCON Finals (End)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Cameroon 2022 for the 33rd Edition of the Africa Cup of Nations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At this very unusual AFCON, DRC Leopards were conspicuously absent, having failed to qualify. In a group that seemed relatively manageable, no one could bear the final result in the qualifiers. DRC was outmanoeuvred by the Panthers of Gabon, even at the Stade des Martyrs. The Palancas Negra of Angola also gave the Leopards a tough time, not to mention the Gambians who gave them a real run for their money. Gambia reached the AFCON finals for the first time in its history in Cameroon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first unusual aspect of these finals was their postponement. Originally scheduled for 2021, the competition was postponed to an even-numbered year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Major sporting events worldwide were postponed or rescheduled, some indefinitely. The replacement of Florent Ibenge by Christian N\u2019sengi, as the Leopards interim head coach was met with little enthusiasm among football fans. This upheaval was a second disruption to the consistency and cohesion that had prevailed within the Leopards’ camp for five years. Very talkative during his first press conference, N\u2019sengi delivered empty rhetoric, harshly criticizing his predecessor for leaving nothing behind, not even a basic structure for the national team. Selective amnesia and a kind of Alzheimer’s are the excuses that prevented Christian N\u2019sengi from being held accountable. Fortunately, jealousy has never been a punishable offense in the Congolese penal code, because that’s precisely what this was about. N’sengi harboured a certain resentment towards his compatriot, Florent Ibenge, despite the mocking smile he flashed him at every encounter and gathering, both private and official.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Florent is among the top three coaches the nation has ever produced, after Vidinic and late Watunda (pending S\u00e9bastien Desabre). The Azam FC coach’s pedigree is so impressive that one would rarely find any blemish on his record. Under his leadership, he not only guided the national team to third place at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, but also narrowly missed out on qualifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. He succeeded in making DRC the third-ranked football nation in Africa and among the top 50 football nations in the world according to the FIFA rankings then. Ibenge had won the CHAN in 2016 in Rwanda with Meshack, who revealed himself to the world in dazzling form. Christian N\u2019sengi\u2019s tenure with the Congolese national team was short-lived; he was quickly dismissed due to poor results \u2013 his record as the Leopards manager included 0 wins, 5 draws, and 2 losses. He conceded 10 goals while scoring only 5.              <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In May 2021, the country appointed Hector Cuper as its new manager. The Argentinian coach is credited with Valencia\u2019s performances in the Spanish La Liga (First Division). Cuper led Valencia to two UEFA Champions League finals, in 2000 and 2001 against Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, featuring Ghanaian Osei Kuffour. It was this illustrious past that tipped the scales in his favour to be appointed Inter Milan coach at the Josep Meazza – San Siro stadium, where he coached stars such as Christian Veri, Ronaldo Naz\u00e1rio, Mohamed Kallon, Alvaro Recoba, Clarence Seedorf, Zaneti, Esteban Cambiasso, Marco Materazzi, and Giuseppe Bergomi. He guided Inter Milan to two UEFA Champions League semi-finals between 2001 and 2003. This impressive resume certainly caught the DRC football authorities\u2019 attention. There was just one drawback: Hector didn’t speak French \u2013 he constantly needed an interpreter to translate his Spanish into French. His first experience on the continent was against Tunisia; a game that ended in a 1-1 draw. Cuper quickly realized that the African environment was far from smooth sailing. He denounced the complexities that made his mission with the Leopards difficult, even if some thought he was simply looking for scapegoats to justify his setbacks. In 12 games, Hector Cuper won 3, lost 4, and drew 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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On July 5, 2022, Argentinian coach Hector Cuper was dismissed by the Congolese Football Federation (FECOFA). The association indicated that Cuper facilitated the separation by agreeing to a reduced severance package. The period between Florent Ibenge’s resignation and Cuper’s departure was so tumultuous that it also led to the resignation of FECOFA president Constant Omari. Omari also lost his two important positions at CAF as First Vice-President and at FIFA as an Executive Member. The questioning of former CAF president Ahmad Ahmad by French police and that of Constant Omari (who was not arrested) by the Congolese prosecutor’s office in Matete cast a pall over sporting events in Africa and the DRC. It was amidst this turmoil that the arrival of the new CAF president, South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe \u2013 owner of Sundowns FC in the PSL (Premier Soccer League), was strongly supported by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who no longer wanted the Malagasy whom he had previously backed to get rid of Issa Hayatou. He saw in this seasoned Cameroonian a fierce opponent who would supposedly harm his FIFA presidency. Issa knew the FIFA machine well, having been in the inner circle of Sepp Blatter, FIFA president since 1998. He had also served as interim FIFA president following Blatter’s resignation when the FIFA corruption scandal broke in 2015. The Italian-Swiss Gianni used his influence to appoint his friend, Veron Mosengwo, as CAF Secretary General. Goodbye to Ahmad Ahmad’s regime, but at FECOFA, things are going from bad to worse \u2013 just a series of Normalization Committees whose mandates never expire. When will the new team to head FECOFA be elected? The question remains unanswered – always!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ivory Coast 2024 for the 34th Edition of the Africa Cup of Nations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March 2022, Hector Cuper led the DRC to the final round of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup. After a 1-1 draw at home against Morocco, they suffered a heavy 1-4 defeat in the return leg in Casablanca, thus ending their hopes of qualifying for the Qatar World Cup. After failing to qualify for the 2022 AFCON in Cameroon and losing the World Cup playoffs, DRC authorities were eager to recruit a top-caliber coach. Christian N\u2019sengi and Hector Cuper successive failures  had forced them to cast their net wide to catch the best \u201cfish\u201d. The call for applications was launched, and more than 30 applicants applied, including the Frenchman S\u00e9bastien Desabre. Having coached ASEC Mimosas (2012-2013), Cotonsport Garoua (2012-2013), Esp\u00e9rance de Tunis (2013-2014), and Clube Recreativo Desportivo Libolo (Angola) in 2015, Desabre had a brief stint at JS Saoura in Algeria before crossing the border to take charge of Wydad Athletic Casablanca (2016-2017). He then moved to Ismaily SC in 2017, the Ugandan national team (2017-2019), and Pyramids FC of Egypt in 2019. He returned to Wydad for a short spell in 2020 before going back to France to manage Chamois Niortais that same year. After two league games with Niort, he took over as coach of the DRC’s national team, the Leopards, two years later. The Valencia native was best known in the DRC for having defeated the Leopards at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt, as coach of the Ugandan Cranes. It was a bitter pill to swallow for DRC, having been beaten by a minnow the size of Uganda at such a high-profile sporting event. Desabre was the favourite to win. The scenario closely resembled one played out during the reign of Marshal Mobutu. Having learned that the Yugoslavian coach Vidinic had qualified Morocco for its first World Cup in 1970 in Mexico, he set out to convince Vidinic to coach the Leopards. His gamble paid off, because in 1974 in Egypt, the DRC (formerly Zaire) won its second continental trophy against Zambia, led by the late Chitalu. This victory served as automatic qualification for the 1974 World Cup in West Germany, in which Zaire participated as the first country from Sub-Saharan Africa. The rest is history\u2026 Alas!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was in August 2022, S\u00e9bastien Desabre penned down his contract as the Leopards new coach for three years. Succeeding Hector Cuper, Desabre had a mission: to qualify the country for both the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast and the 2026 World Cup in Mexico, the United States, and Canada, thus establishing the momentum for renewal in Congolese football.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On March 24, 2023, Desabre began his new job with a 3-1 victory against Mauritania’s Mourabitounes at the TP Mazembe Stadium in Kamalondo, Lubumbashi, during the third matchday of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. Hector Cuper’s Leopards had already lost their first two games in these qualifiers. 0-1 against Gabon at the Stade des Martyrs and 1-2 against Sudan. It took a Desabre to salvage the Congolese ship, which was struggling to reach Ivorian AFCON. At the end of these qualifiers, DRC topped the group with 12 points from 4 wins, 2 losses, and no draws. They finished ahead of Mauritania, Gabon (whom they beat 0-2 at home with a new goalkeeper, Mpasi, who delivered a stellar performance), and Sudan. Ivory Coast, here come the Leopards!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon was moved to 2022 instead of 2021, the schedule was too tight to host the next edition in 2023. Therefore, CAF deemed it appropriate to postpone the Ivorian AFCON to January 2024. In this final tournament, DRC Leopards were in Group F with Morocco, Tanzania, and Zambia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the Laurent Pokou Stadium in San Pedro, the Leopards opened their campaign against Zambia. Kangwa of Zambia took the lead, but Bakambu equalized four minutes later, making it 1-1. Another surprising draw occurred between Morocco and DRC. Achraf Hakimi opened the scoring for Morocco in the 6th minute, but Silas Katompa Mvumpa had to wait until 78th minute to equalize. The Moroccans, given the strength of their squad and international stars in their squad, considered the draw a defeat. However, Morocco’s semi-final appearance at the World Cup in Qatar did not make the Leopards complacent. It was at the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium in Korhogo that the DRC’s Leopards recorded another draw, this time a goalless draw against Tanzania’s Taifa Stars. Second in Group F behind Morocco with 3 points from 3 draws, 0 wins, and 0 losses, DRC is surprisingly the champion of draws in the final stages of the Africa Cup of Nations. In 2013 in South Africa, under Claude Leroy, all group games ended in a draw, with or without goals, but the team was eliminated. The same scenario played out in 2015 in Equatorial Guinea. With Florent Ibenge at the helm, the Leopards qualified for the next round. Nine years later, the streak continued \u2013 S\u00e9bastien Desabre repeated this feat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Round of 16, the Leopards faced the seven-time African champions Egypt on January 28, 2024, at the Stade Laurent Pokou in San Pedro. The Pharaohs were without their star striker Mohamed Salah, who was injured \u2013 he has yet to achieve success in the Africa Cup of Nations with Egypt. Their starting goalkeeper, Al Ahly’s Mohamed El-Shenawy, had been ruled out for the remainder of the tournament. The Pharaohs were not at their best, an opportunity the Leopards were eager to seize. The first 15 minutes saw the Leopards dominated by the Pharaohs before they began to impose their physical dominance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They managed to launch incursions into the Egyptian penalty area, but their precision let them down. From a quick throw-in by Masuaku, Johan Wisa broke through on goal. His cross was blocked, but on the rebound, Meshack Elia was there to finish the move in the 37th minute, 1-0 to the Leopards. The euphoria was short-lived, however, as the referee was alerted following an Egyptian attack. After consulting VAR (Video Assistant Referee), the referee determined that the Congolese center-back, Batubinsika, had indeed placed his arm on Hegazy’s temple in an aerial duel \u2013 a penalty for Egypt. Mostafa Mohamed converted it for the equalizer. The score remained 1-1 at halftime and at the end of regulation time. Extra time proved fruitless, leading to a penalty shootout. Egyptians Mohamed and goalkeeper Gabaski missed their penalties, while only Masuaku failed to convert his for the Congolese side. The Congolese goalkeeper, who was playing for Rodez in the French second division at the time, was among the Congolese penalty takers and, unlike his Egyptian counterpart Gabaski, he did not disappoint. S\u00e9bastien Desabre’s DRC brought joy to an entire nation by eliminating Egypt at this stage of the competition. The popular jubilation, which transformed into a whirlwind like a tsunami, bore testimony to the importance of this win. In Kinshasa, Congolese people lined the main thoroughfares in the capital towards the African Union City, the official residence of the Head of State, to express their gratitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reaching the quarterfinals of the Africa Cup of Nations was a tremendous achievement, but it did not mean taking the rest of the competition lightly. Five games without a single victory, only draws \u2013 an incredible performance! At the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan, the DRC faced Guinea in the quarterfinals. Between these two unexpected contenders at this stage of the competition, the game started at a blistering pace with a breakthrough by Morgan Guilavogui right from the kickoff. The Guinean was stopped just in time in front of the Congolese goal, and Mbemba was a victim of handball, but in a natural movement, his arm was close to his body. The then-Marseille player was not penalized. In the 20th minute, Mbemba remained clumsy or perhaps overly aggressive in defense; he ended up conceding a penalty for a push on Mohamed Bayo, who converted it to open the scoring. More enterprising, DRC quickly responded in the 27th minute from a corner. Mbemba scored the equalizer, putting his team back on track and redeeming himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the break, both S\u00e9bastien Desabre’s and Kaba Diawara’s players showed more bite. The two coaches had played their part, as the game changed just after the hour mark. Guinean substitute Facinet Conte squandered a promising opportunity in the opposing penalty area, misplacing a pass to his teammate Bayo, who would have been alone in front of an empty net in the 61st minute. Moments later, Silas Katompa, who had just come onto the pitch, drew a foul in the penalty area \u2013 the result was a harsh penalty. Johan Wissa stepped up to give the Congolese the lead in 66th minute. At 2-1 for the DRC, the Syli National seemed to be hesitating. 8 minutes from time, the Leopards sealed the victory when West Ham’s left-back Arthur Masuaku surprised everyone, especially the Guinean goalkeeper, with a free kick from the left flank that nestled directly into the net for Congo’s third goal. After three draws in the round robin stage and then a penalty shootout win against Egypt in the Round of 16, DRC finally secured their first impressive win. With this 3-1 victory, DRC had reached the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On February 7, 2024, in the semi-final, the host nation, Ivory Coast, faced DRC. The Ivorian Elephants were deeply hurt, as they were mathematically eliminated from the competition their country had hosted. Once again, the system of expanding the number of teams qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations finals from 16 to 24 proved to be a saving grace. Thrashed 4-0 by Equatorial Guinea on the final day of the group stage, Ivory Coast sacked coach Jean-Louis Gasset after this humiliating defeat. Gasset was replaced mid-AFCON by his assistant, former international Emerse Fa\u00e9, assisted by his former Elephants teammate, Guy Demel. The Ivorian team narrowly qualified as one of the best third-placed teams. It was a turning point, as the Elephants managed to reverse the trend in spectacular fashion. Having eliminated the defending champions, Senegal, on penalties, the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan became the scene of clashes by the host nation set to face DRC for a place in the final. The game was so hard-fought that there were few clear-cut scoring opportunities throughout the first half, despite a few quiet bursts of attacking play here and there. With 25 minutes remaining in regulation time, Borussia Dortmund striker Sebastian Haller volleyed home a cross from the evergreen Max-Alain Gradel to open the scoring, and that remained the final score. DRC once again failed to reach the final, as Ivory Coast qualified. This win marked Ivory Coast’s fifth appearance in the Africa Cup of Nations final. DRC, meanwhile, had to settle for the third-place match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The third-place game between South Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo took place on February 10, 2024, at the Houphou\u00ebt-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan. Despite several clear-cut chances, notably for Simon Banza, Silas, Chancel Mbemba, and Fiston Mayele, DRC failed to capitalize on their opportunities during regulation time. With the game ending in a goalless draw, the outcome would be decided by a penalty shootout. South African goalkeeper Ronwen Williams once again distinguished himself by saving two penalties, those of Chancel Mbemba and Meschack Elia, thus securing 3rd<\/sup> place for Bafana Bafana. South Africa claimed third place in the Africa Cup of Nations by defeating the Democratic Republic of Congo 6-5 on penalties. With this performance, South Africa reached the podium at the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time since 2000, while the Democratic Republic of Congo finished in fourth place. Incredibly, the DRC will be remembered for having recorded a win during its campaign \u2013 a 3-1 win against Kaba Diawara’s Syli National in the quarterfinals. Back in 2015 at the Equatorial Guinea AFCON, they finished third after a single victory \u2013 again in the quarterfinals against their Pool Malebo neighbour, Congo-Brazzaville. The similarity of their two semi-final appearances in the AFCON illustrates the shared destiny between Florent Ibenge and S\u00e9bastien Desabre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the next AFCON \u2013 Morocco 2025 is in the wait\u2013 thank you for lending your attention in chronicling the Democratic Republic of Congo\u2019s journey in the competition finals, under all its names, as a nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the bold hope that future generations will strive to perpetuate the DRC football national team\u2019s history for the rest of this 2nd<\/sup> millennium and beyond!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cameroon 2022 for the 33rd Edition of the Africa Cup of Nations At this very…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":1617,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1614"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1614"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1614\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1622,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1614\/revisions\/1622"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1617"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amagep.co.za\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}