Title: The Congolese Ladies Leopards eliminated from the qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
Introduction :
In a tumultuous eliminatory journey, the women’s national football team of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Leopards dames, was unfortunately eliminated during the second round of the Africa Zone qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. After a first leg match promising, the Congolese lost 0-2 in the return match against the South African team Banyana Banyana. A look back at this disappointing defeat and the challenges the team had to face.
A journey strewn with pitfalls:
The first leg, which was played in Kinshasa on October 25, 2023, ended with a score of 1-1, thus offering some hope to the Leopards ladies. However, the conditions of preparation of the Congolese team were marked by financial difficulties, in particular the non-payment of salaries and bonuses of the players. A few hours before the first leg, the Leopards had also skipped preparations to claim their legitimate rights.
A bitter defeat:
Despite these obstacles, the Leopards ladies managed to offer a solid performance in the first leg, obtaining a valuable draw against the South African team. However, in the return match in Johannesburg on October 30, 2023, the South Africans showed themselves stronger and won with a score of 2-0. The two goals were scored by Kgatlana Thembi, in the 72nd and 88th minutes respectively.
The consequences and lessons to be learned:
This elimination represents a hard blow for the Congolese team, which had great ambitions for these qualifiers. However, it is important to emphasize that financial difficulties and poor preparation conditions likely had an impact on the team’s performance. It is essential that the Congolese football authorities take measures to guarantee better support for national teams, in particular by ensuring the payment of salaries and bonuses of players.
Conclusion :
Despite the elimination of the Congolese Ladies Leopards during the qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, it is important to highlight the effort and resilience that the team demonstrated in difficult conditions. It is now time for Congolese football authorities to learn from this experience and invest in better preparation and adequate support for the women’s and men’s national teams, in order to be able to compete with the best African and international teams at the ‘future.