{"id":896,"date":"2026-05-23T09:40:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T06:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T09:40:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T06:40:17","slug":"ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/","title":{"rendered":"Ebola Outbreak Forces DR Congo Leopards to Shift 2026 World Cup Camp to Belgium"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Democratic Republic of Congo have been compelled to adjust their preparation plans for the 2026 World Cup after a deadly Ebola outbreak was confirmed in the country. The change affects the team\u2019s build-up schedule and where they will train ahead of the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>The Congolese Football Association has opted to relocate the Leopards\u2019 preparation to Belgium rather than staying in Congo. With the health situation developing, officials have moved the camp to a quieter setting for the coming weeks.<\/p>\n<p>A planned send-off event for supporters in Kinshasa has also been called off. Team spokesman Jerry Kalemo said the farewell in the capital will not go ahead.<\/p>\n<h3>Quick facts<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>DR Congo have altered their 2026 World Cup preparation due to an Ebola outbreak.<\/li>\n<li>The team will base their build-up in Belgium instead of Congo.<\/li>\n<li>A supporters\u2019 farewell in Kinshasa has been cancelled, per spokesman Jerry Kalemo.<\/li>\n<li>The Leopards will train in Europe to work toward the start of the World Cup.<\/li>\n<li>On June 3, DRC play Denmark in a friendly at Sclessin in Li\u00e8ge.<\/li>\n<li>On June 9, DRC face Chile in a second warm-up match in southern Spain.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>With the disruption to public life escalating, the squad will now remain in Europe for the next phase of preparations. Their aim is to keep training on track while reducing exposure risks during the build-up period.<\/p>\n<p>The first key fixture on the revised calendar is set for June 3, when DRC will host Denmark in a friendly at Sclessin in Li\u00e8ge. The match is scheduled as an early test of the team\u2019s rhythm and readiness.<\/p>\n<p>They will then play Chile in another warm-up game on June 9. That second friendly will take place in southern Spain, giving the Leopards a further opportunity to fine-tune ahead of the World Cup.<\/p>\n<p>On the wider public health front, the World Health Organisation has declared a public health emergency linked to the outbreak of a rare form of Ebola in DRC. The WHO said the disease has claimed the lives of more than 130 people, with nearly 600 additional suspected cases reported.<\/p>\n<p>The situation has also triggered travel restrictions from the United States. The American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that the US will bar entry for all foreign nationals who have been in DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan within the previous three weeks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Democratic Republic of Congo have been compelled to adjust their preparation plans for the 2026 World Cup after a deadly Ebola outbreak was confirmed in the country. The change affects the team\u2019s build-up schedule and where they will train ahead of the tournament. The Congolese Football Association has opted to relocate the Leopards\u2019 preparation to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep","mma_seo_breadcrumb_text":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_url":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_hide_ui":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_labels":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Zalebs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-23T06:40:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Zibuyile Dladla\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Zibuyile Dladla\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\"},\"headline\":\"Ebola Outbreak Forces DR Congo Leopards to Shift 2026 World Cup Camp to Belgium\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-23T06:40:17+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":398,\"commentCount\":0,\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/\",\"name\":\"DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-23T06:40:17+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\"},\"description\":\"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Ebola Outbreak Forces DR Congo Leopards to Shift 2026 World Cup Camp to Belgium\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Zalebs\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\",\"name\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\"},\"description\":\"Zibuyile began her media journey as a sales intern at Mediamark (Kagiso Media) before moving into digital content creation for ZAlebs.com. Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/za.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/author\\\/zibuyile-dladla\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium","description":"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium","og_description":"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep","og_url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/","og_site_name":"Zalebs","article_published_time":"2026-05-23T06:40:17+00:00","author":"Zibuyile Dladla","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Zibuyile Dladla","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/"},"author":{"name":"Zibuyile Dladla","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e"},"headline":"Ebola Outbreak Forces DR Congo Leopards to Shift 2026 World Cup Camp to Belgium","datePublished":"2026-05-23T06:40:17+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/"},"wordCount":398,"commentCount":0,"articleSection":["Sports"],"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/","name":"DR Congo Leopards 2026 World Cup Camp Moved to Belgium","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-05-23T06:40:17+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e"},"description":"DR Congo Leopards shift their 2026 World Cup camp to Belgium after a deadly Ebola outbreak, changing training plans and match prep","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/ebola-outbreak-forces-dr-congo-leopards-to-shift-2026-world-cup-camp-to-belgium\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Ebola Outbreak Forces DR Congo Leopards to Shift 2026 World Cup Camp to Belgium"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/","name":"Zalebs","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e","name":"Zibuyile Dladla","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Zibuyile Dladla"},"description":"Zibuyile began her media journey as a sales intern at Mediamark (Kagiso Media) before moving into digital content creation for ZAlebs.com. Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.","sameAs":["https:\/\/za.linkedin.com\/in\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a"],"url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/author\/zibuyile-dladla\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}