{"id":172064,"date":"2025-11-16T16:18:02","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T16:18:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/nigeria-vs-dr-congo-live-updates-world-cup-2026-qualifier-caf-final-latest-team-news-the-athletic-the-new-york-times\/"},"modified":"2025-11-16T16:18:02","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T16:18:02","slug":"nigeria-vs-dr-congo-live-updates-world-cup-2026-qualifier-caf-final-latest-team-news-the-athletic-the-new-york-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/nigeria-vs-dr-congo-live-updates-world-cup-2026-qualifier-caf-final-latest-team-news-the-athletic-the-new-york-times\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigeria vs DR Congo live updates: World Cup 2026 qualifier CAF final latest, team news – The Athletic – The New York Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

International Football
2026 World
Cup Countdown
live
Updated 22s ago<\/span>
Nigeria<\/a> face DR Congo with both teams desperate to keep their World Cup hopes alive in Rabat, Morocco today.<\/strong>
They are contesting the CAF play-off final, with a win seeing them progress to the intercontinental play-offs in March.
Nigeria beat Gabon 4-1 after extra time on Thursday to reach this stage, while DR Congo edged past Cameroon<\/a>.
GO FURTHER
Nigeria players \u2018sent a message\u2019 over financial dispute with training boycott \u2013 William Troost-Ekong
At the time when Nigeria needed on-field unity the most, the divide between players and the Nigerian Football Federation widened once again.
The players boycotted training during the build-up to playing Gabon on Thursday because of unresolved disputes with outstanding payments before eventually training after the issue was resolved.
I think we can file their pre-match prep under \u2018far from ideal\u2019…
It\u2019s safe to say that Nigeria are probably favourites in this match \u2014 and have been during the play-off campaign as a whole \u2014 thanks to the host of talented players within their squad, from Alex Iwobi to Zaidu Sanusi and beyond.
Fans of English football will not struggle to pick out names and faces that they know.
Among them, Ademola Lookman, Iwobi, Calvin Bassey and William Troost-Ekong are just a few who are currently or past players in the Premier League and Championship.
DR Congo, meanwhile, played shortly after Nigeria beat Gabon on Thursday evening.
Manchester United's Bryan Mbeumo shot straight down the goalkeeper's throat after two sharp one-twos, Theo Bongonda slashed over before Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana made a fine diving stop to his left.
Mbeumo, one on one, poked it wide in the biggest chance of the match…
Until DR Congo captain Chancel Mbemba met a stoppage-time corner with a sweet left-footed volley which ripped past Onana. A stunning winner against the favourites.
Considering the importance of Thursday's semifinal, the Moulay Hassan stadium was surprisingly empty before kick-off. It is difficult to make an exact estimate, but there cannot have been more than 2,500 fans when the teams emerged.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced on Wednesday that fans who had tickets for AFCON could attend this game in a clear attempt to convince locals to attend to boost crowd numbers, but it did not have much of an impact.
Gabon fans, outnumbering their Nigerian counterparts, waved flags, blew whistles and banged drums. Nigeria fans finally emerged around the 59th minute into the upper tier.
They started banging their own drums and quickly drowned out the boos from Gabon\u2019s support when they arrived. Nonetheless, even by full time the stadium was not at half capacity. Maybe the rain deterred people, but they missed a dramatic game.
The way the entire stadium erupted at Lemina\u2019s equaliser made it clear that Gabon\u2019s fans outnumbered Nigeria\u2019s. Nigeria could use more support in Rabat today.
The problem for Nigeria is that they faded so quickly after a strong start. Lookman, Iwobi and Osimhen linked up effortlessly in the first 30 minutes but then struggled to create any more chances.
Nigeria failed to punish Gabon when they were on top. Adams\u2019 strike came from Gabon making a mistake in possession, instead of Nigeria cutting through their defence.
When Lemina equalised and the Gabon fans went wild, it briefly felt like an upset was on the cards, though Nigeria blew Gabon away in extra time thanks to their strength in depth.
Nigeria will be physically and mentally drained after the last few days. They will hope that everything they have been through will bring them closer together.
All the talk coming into Thursday's game was about Victor Osimhen's red-hot Galatasaray form, particularly in the Champions League.
But it looked for much of the match as though he would be unable to help Nigeria to an important win.
He squandered a host of big chances, including one in the very last minute of normal time, and must have been kicking himself ahead of extra time.
Then he came up trumps in that extra-time period with two great finishes. Nigeria fans will be hoping to see the Osimhen of extra time in today's game…
Nigeria scraped past Gabon, 4-1 after extra time, in the qualifying playoff semifinal on Thursday.
A loose Aaron Appindangoye backpass led to Akor Adams tapping into an empty net, before Mario Lemina equalised with a deflected effort in stoppage time.
Nigeria should have won it even later in normal time but Victor Osimhen, clean through on goal, directed his effort horribly wide.
Gabon faded in extra time, Chidera Ejuke putting Nigeria 2-1 up before two more late goals from Osimhen.
Recap how everything happened with our live coverage from the match here<\/a> or via Jay Harris<\/em>\u2019 briefing below.
GO FURTHER
Nigeria 4 Gabon 1: World Cup dream lives on, Osimhen\u2019s miss (and goals) and VAR controversy
The Democratic Republic of Congo, meanwhile, were unlucky to come up against one of the best sides in Africa, Senegal, in their qualifying group.
Despite winning seven of their 10 matches and taking 22 points from a possible 30 in a successful campaign, undefeated Senegal edged them out by two points.
That has meant DR Congo have more hoops to jump through to continue their progress to the World Cup.
Nigeria finished second place in Group C behind the 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa in a very tight 2026 World Cup qualification group.
South Africa were top with 18 points, and though Nigeria pipped third-placed Benin on goal difference, both finished on 17, one off the South Africans.
Hence the play-off.
Nigeria failed to win any of their first four qualification matches, but the appointment of Eric Chelle in January coincided with an upturn in form as Nigeria won four and drew two of their remaining qualifiers.
While DR Congo's selection looks like this.
Goalkeepers: <\/strong>Matthieu Epolo, Timothy Fayulu, Lionel Mpasi.
Defenders: <\/strong>Rocky Bushiri, Steve Kapuadi, Joris Kayembe, Gedeon Kalulu, Arthur Masuaku, Chancel Mbemba, Axel Tuanzebe, Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Midfielders: <\/strong>Michel-Ange Balikwisha, Theo Bongonda, Meschak Elia, Edo Kayembe, Nathanael Mbuku, Ngal'ayel Mukau, Samuel Moutoussamy, Charles Pickel, Noah Sadiki, Mario Stroeykens.
Forwards: <\/strong>Cedric Bakambu, Brian Cipenga, Samuel Essende, Fiston Mayele.
Here are the players available to Eric Chelle for this international break:
Goalkeepers: <\/strong>Stanley Nwabali, Amas Obasogie, Maduka Okoye.
Defenders: <\/strong>Semi Ajayi, Chidozie Awaziem, Calvin Bassey, Benjamin Fredrick, Bruno Onyemaechi, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Zaidu Sanusi, William Troost-Ekong.
Midfielders: <\/strong>Alex Iwobi, Wilfred Ndidi, Raphael Onyedika, Frank Onyeka, Alhassan Yusuf.
Forwards: <\/strong>Akor Adams, Tolu Arokodare, Samuel Chukwueze, Chidera Ejuke, Ademola Lookman, Olakunle Olusegun, Victor Osimhen, Moses Simon.
It's a pretty busy day of fixtures during this international break. Here's a selection of who else is playing today, in a mixture of World Cup qualifiers (WCQs) and international friendlies (IFs).
The Athletic<\/strong><\/em> is the ultimate one-stop shop for all sports fans.
In the soccer, the Premier League continues after this international break with AFCON following before the end of the year, while across the pond the NFL and NBA seasons are well under way.
Plus there is coverage of college football, F1, tennis and plenty more. You can follow all of that \u2014 and so much more \u2014 with us.
Subscribe on an exclusive offer here<\/a>.
Moulay Hassan Stadium, Rabat, Morocco<\/strong>
Home of club FUS Rabat since 2012<\/strong>, the stadium has been recently renovated in preparation for Morocco hosting the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
The capacity is 22,000<\/strong> and the stadium is part of a wider sports complex in the city of Rabat, the country's capital city.
For those of you looking to tune in to the action alongside our live coverage, here's how you can do it:
The match begins at 8pm<\/strong> local time in Rabat, Morocco, which is 7pm GMT <\/strong>in the UK.
Across the pond in the United States, that works out as 2pm ET<\/strong> on the east coast and 11am PT<\/strong> on the west.
Hello and welcome everyone to The Athletic<\/em><\/strong>, where today we are covering Nigeria vs DR Congo live in a crucial qualifier for the 2026 World Cup.
This is a huge match for both teams\u2019 hopes of qualifying for next summer\u2019s tournament, with this the final of a mini-tournament for qualification from the CAF region covering African football.
The winner today will progress to the inter-confederation play-offs in March. So these two teams are still two wins away from the World Cup.
There's plenty of build-up over the next few hours, so stick with us. We've got you covered.<\/p>\n

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International Football2026 WorldCup CountdownliveUpdated 22s agoNigeria face DR Congo with both teams desperate to keep their World Cup hopes alive in Rabat, Morocco today.They are contesting the CAF play-off final, with a win seeing them progress to the intercontinental play-offs in March.Nigeria beat Gabon 4-1 after extra time on Thursday to reach this stage, while […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":172065,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-172064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172064","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172064"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172064\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}