Pre-World Cup friendly cancelled over fears it could spread eye-bleeding disease Ebola

The game between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Chile was due to take place in Spain, but the town’s mayor stepped in to ban it due to health concerns

A pre-World Cup friendly has been cancelled amid fears it could spread eye-bleeding disease Ebola. The match between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Chile was due to take place in Spain.

But the mayor of host town La Línea de la Concepción stepped in to ban it. The incurable disease – which causes bleeding from the ears, eyes, nose, mouth and gums, jaundice, brain fog and death – has killed over 220 in the Congo.

Health chiefs in Missouri, US, where England will be based during the World Cup, have warned medics to prepare for an influx of sufferers.

The DR Congo’s football team, which is due to compete at the tournament, faces being kicked out if it cannot convince US officials it has quarantined adequately.

Mayor Juan Franco said he had ‘signed the decree banning the holding’ of DR Congo’s planned June 9 warm-up match as a precautionary measure. He said he was following recommendations by the Andalusia regional government’s health service.

The mayor of La Línea, which has a population of 65,000 and is close to the border with Gibraltar, added the head of the municipality’s medical service had also advised against holding the match. “A report by the head of the mayoralty’s health service of La Línea advised categorically against hosting the match given the health risks which might arise,” he said.

The DR Congo have qualified for their first World Cup since they featured in 1974 as Zaire. The team cancelled a pre-World Cup training camp at home after the country was hit by Ebola a fortnight ago and is based in Belgium instead.

On May 22 US authorities said the DR Congo squad must isolate for 21 days before they would be allowed in for the World Cup. They are due to be based in Houston, Texas, where they are set play their first Group K match on June 17 against Cristiano Ronaldo ’s Portugal.

They are then scheduled to head to Guadalajara, Mexico, to play Colombia on June 24 before returning to the US to play Uzbekistan in Atlanta, Georgia on June 28.

Dr Holland Haynie, chief medical officer at Central Ozarks Medical Center in Osage Beach, Missouri, which is less than three hours’ drive from England’s training base at Compass Minerals National Performance Center near Kansas City, said a ‘state-level outbreak alert’ had been issued for the disease.

World champions Argentina – and the team’s legendary talisman Lionel Messi – will be based in the same city. Dr Haynie said: “When state public-health alerts arrive part of my job as a chief medical officer is to make sure our doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses and clinic teams know what is happening and what to watch for. That is public health before it becomes a headline.

“And right now it is becoming visible fast. The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda is growing. WHO has raised the risk level inside Congo to ‘very high’. Health workers are trying to contain the outbreak in areas already strained by conflict, displacement and fragile health systems.”

A US medic was ‘receiving care in Germany’ after testing positive while treating patients in the Congo. Though Dr Haynie said there was a ‘low risk’ Ebola would hit the US health chiefs should not ‘ignore it’.

“The World Cup adds another layer,” he warned. “Across North America millions of people will travel, gather, celebrate and return home.

“Airports, hotels, stadiums, urgent cares, emergency departments and local health departments will all become part of the same public-health reality. The Democratic Republic of Congo’s national team has already moved part of its pre-World Cup preparations out of Kinshasa because of the outbreak and related restrictions.

“The outbreak has also disrupted diplomacy with the India-Africa Forum Summit postponed because of the emerging health situation. That does not mean the World Cup is unsafe. But ignoring risk does not make it disappear.”

He said fans visiting from affected regions should be ‘screened’ and anyone with ‘concerning symptoms’ should ‘call ahead before going to a clinic or emergency room’. The medic added: “The World Cup should be a celebration. Families should enjoy it. Cities should host it proudly. Visitors should feel welcome.

“But the work behind that celebration has to happen before the first plane lands and before the first fever reaches a front desk. America never fully left crisis mode after COVID. Ebola and the World Cup will test whether we can do something harder – take a real threat seriously without letting fear become the plan.”