DR CONGO

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Matchworn Yannick Bangala 14.11.2020 COG 🇨🇩 : ANG 🇦🇴 0-0

Manufacturer: O'Neills

Source: Assistant coach

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THE COUNTRY

Contrary to popular belief, “DR Congo” does not stand for “Doctor Congo”, but for “Democratic Republic of the Congo”. Since this is quite a mouthful, the country is usually abbreviated as “Congo-Kinshasa” or simply “DR Congo”.

“The Leopards”, as they are nicknamed, are among the bigger names in African football, ranking as high a 28th place in the 2017 FIFA ranking.

Their most successful times, however, date back to the 60s and 70s, where they managed to win the Africa Cup in 1968 (as Congo-Kinshasa) and 1974 (as Zaïre), as well as participating in the 1974 World Cup in Germany.

As the most populous Francophone country in the world, the DR Congo has accomplished to assemble a respectful squad that consists almost exclusively of players from European Leagues.

THE SHIRT

This jersey from Irish manufacturer O'Neills makes it easy to see why the DR Congo team is nicknamed the “Leopards,” considering that a huge leopard head takes up almost half of the shirt.

Unlike the fan shirts, both the Congolese flag and the federation badge are embroidered on the players' jerseys. Thankfully, the horribly disfigured leopard that still appears on the federation badge of this shirt, has been put out of its misery in recent years and replaced with a healthier-looking specimen.

In addition to the left chest, the pour crippled kitten also appears on the back of the jersey in the form of a large embossed crest below the number.

The jersey comes from a former employee of the Congolese Football Association, who sold the shirt along with matching shorts and mismatched socks. It was worn by Yannick Bangala in various matches during the 2020 AFCON qualification campaign.

Yannick Bangala wearing the shirt during the AFCOn qualification campaign 2020.