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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Amanda Langell

DR Congo 2026 World Cup Preview: Overlooked Leopards Demand Respect

After a 52-year exile, DR Congo is back at the World Cup to rewrite the narrative surrounding its national team.

The Leopards, known at the time as Zaire, became the laughing stock of the 1974 edition in West Germany when they conceded 14 goals and scored none in their World Cup debut. It then took more than half a century and a bit of set-piece magic for the team to qualify again for the 2026 edition.

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