AfroBasket 2025: DR Congo could have a part to play

DR Congo will compete in Group A in the first round of AfroBasket 2025, which takes place in Angola (12-24 August). The Leopards will face Ivory Coast, Cape Verde and Rwanda. The Congolese, who had a very strong qualifying campaign with 5 wins in 6 games, will have a say.

Reunions with Rwanda and Cape Verde

In the group stage, DR Congo will meet Cape Verde and Rwanda again, two teams they faced in Kigali in the group phase of the last AfroBasket. The Leopards were beaten by the Rwandans (68-82) before beating Cape Verde (70-66).

At that AfroBasket in Rwanda, DR Congo were knocked out in the group phase after a final defeat to Angola (58-73), while Cape Verde reached the semi-finals and finished 4th. And 4 years on, a lot has changed; Cape Verde and Rwanda both had very average qualifying campaigns.

The Cape Verdeans managed only 3 wins in 6 games, while the Rwandans won just 2 of their 6. DR Congo, by contrast, finished top of their group with 5 wins in 6 games, including one against South Sudan.

DR Congo and Rwanda will meet in Angola for the third time, after AfroBasket 2007, which ended in a Congolese win, and AfroCan 2023, where the Rwandans beat the Congolese in the third-place game.

These reunions promise to be explosive, according to sports analyst Jean de Dieu Mukendi. "There will be explosive reunions, given the political context between DR Congo and Rwanda. These are two nations who know each other, who met at AfroBasket 2007 in Luanda, Angola. DR Congo beat Rwanda, who finished bottom of the competition. The two nations met again in Luanda at the AfroCan and Rwanda blocked DR Congo's path in the match for 3rd place. These are two neighbouring nations who are starting to make a habit of meeting each other," he said.

Ivory Coast, a true ogre

In this group, Ivory Coast are undoubtedly the big favourites. The Ivorians have been consistent since 2018, with breathtaking qualifying campaigns. For this AfroBasket again, the Elephants made a clean sweep in qualifying, winning all 6 of their games.

On top of that, Ivory Coast will want to go all the way this time and win the trophy, after losing the final of the last edition to Tunisia (75-78).

Good preparation to get out of this group

In a group where only the winner goes straight through to the quarter-finals and the second and third-placed teams must play in the play-offs, DR Congo will have a say. Indeed, the Leopards are full of confidence after, notably, their prestigious win over South Sudan (76-69) in qualifying.

And with a talented squad, the Congolese can harbour big ambitions at this AfroBasket, says Jean de Dieu Mukendi. "With this new group, this new core, which will include a few players who were at the recent AfroBasket in Kigali, DR Congo's chances are intact. But they need to be serious. In the qualifying window, we saw a DR Congo side who performed very well, going 3/3. It is still a team that should be taken seriously. We dare to believe that DR Congo could have a part to play," he said.

For his part, Richard Kadima, another sports analyst, thinks everything will come down to good preparation. "The Leopards will need very good preparation with the new coach, who arrived during the qualifiers for this AfroBasket. The team must be given good preparation conditions, but also the necessary resources, notably substantial bonuses, to motivate the players to go for at least the semi-finals," he said.

DR Congo have never been crowned AfroBasket champions, and they will be chasing a first title this year in Angola.