The Democratic Republic of Congo’s national football team must remain in quarantine for 21 days ahead of the World Cup due to Ebola. If this does not happen, the football players run the risk of not entering the United States.
“We want to make sure that nothing comes near us or at our borders in this way,” Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House World Cup task force, told ESPN.
Earlier this week, Congo had already canceled a planned three-day training camp and a farewell event with fans in the capital Kinshasa due to the Ebola outbreak in the east of the country. Ebola is a contagious and life-threatening disease. The virus is transmitted through physical contact and contact with bodily fluids.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are now almost 750 suspected cases and almost 180 suspected deaths from Ebola in Congo. So far, several dozen cases have been laboratory confirmed.
Congo is participating in the World Cup for the first time since 1974.
