Linafoot: championship set to be cut short

In the DR Congo, seeing the football league run its full course has been something of a miracle in recent seasons. Once again, the Congolese Ligue 1 is set to be cut short. In previous seasons it was down to covid-19 or a lack of funding, but this time it is because there is not enough time.

No extension beyond 30 June

The calendar for the return leg of the Illicocash Ligue 1 play-off phase schedules matches until 22 July, yet the Normalisation Committee of the Congolese Football Federation has only asked the Sports Minister for an extension until 30 June in order to stage the Coupe du Congo, whose final is scheduled for 30 June.

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FECOFA justifies the decision by saying that the deadline for submitting the names of representatives to CAF for next season's interclub competitions is fixed for 30 June, and that there is no valid reason to ask CAF to grant the DR Congo an extension. "Everyone knew that the sporting season in the DR Congo ends on 31 May, so why was nothing organised to finish the league within the time limit? We will not be asking CAF for an extension because there is no valid reason for them to grant us one. On 30 June, everything stops ", said FECOFA general secretary Innocent Kibundulu.

A problematic Léopards A' training camp

Even though the sporting season ends on 31 May, several sports analysts believe the 30-day extension granted to FECOFA by the Congolese Sports Minister could have allowed the Ligue nationale de football (LINAFOOT) to stage both legs of the play-off phase and decide a champion on the pitch.

Indeed, the league was suspended for almost two months between January and February because FECOFA kept in place a Léopards A' training camp in the Gulf, even though the CHAN had already been postponed to August. "Responsibility is shared. LINAFOOT is as much to blame for this delay as FECOFA. Why keep the Léopards camp going when several players who were present in February would not be available in August? FECOFA must take responsibility ", said analyst Richard Kabeya.

For the FECOFA general secretary, the camp does not fully explain the league's long delay. "You talk about this camp, yet during December 2024, several clubs went 3 to 4 weeks without playing a single match. Was that the camp's fault? This is not the time for pointing fingers; we need to think about the best formula to put forward to solve the problem ", said Innocent Kibundulu.

Things must return to normal

This problem of the league being cut short has become a recurring one in the DR Congo; and sports analyst Simon Valdo Yamba says things must change once elections are held. "How long are we going to keep asking for extensions? We all know the sporting season ends on 31 May, so why don't we organise things properly? And there is no way to sanction those at fault because there is no elected committee. Elections must be held at every level so that people are held to account", he said.

Despite the certainty that the league will end early, LINAFOOT is determined to complete the first leg of the play-off phase and have the clubs play an equal number of matches in the return leg, so as to draw up a table and name a champion.