DR Congo end 52-year World Cup wait with historic first victory to reach knockout round

The Democratic Republic of Congo produced one of African football's greatest FIFA World Cup moments after coming from behind to defeat Uzbekistan 3-1 and book a historic place in the Round of 32 for the first time.

After waiting 52 years to return to football's biggest stage, the Leopards have now taken another giant step by reaching the knockout rounds for the first time in their history. The victory also secured DR Congo's first-ever FIFA World Cup win and earned them a Round of 32 clash against England.

The result saw DR Congo become the eighth African nation to qualify for the knockout stage at the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 11th African country overall to progress beyond the group stage in the tournament's history. They also joined Morocco, Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Tunisia, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt as African nations to have won a World Cup match.

Uzbekistan made the brighter start in Atlanta, with captain Eldor Shomurodov finding the net after just 30 seconds, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside.

The Roma striker would not be denied for long. Ten minutes later, he capitalised on the hesitation between Axel Tuanzebe and Aaron Wan-Bissaka before producing a delicate lob over goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi to hand Uzbekistan the lead.

The Central Asians dominated much of the opening half and looked comfortable, although DR Congo thought they had levelled through Nathanael Mbuku. His stunning strike into the top corner was ruled out following a VAR review after officials judged he had committed a foul in the build-up when his hand brushed Sherzod Nasrullaev's face.

Needing victory to stay alive, the Leopards emerged after halftime with renewed urgency.

Yoane Wissa initially missed a glorious chance before fortune finally swung in DR Congo's favour when Manchester City's Abdukodir Khusanov brought the Newcastle United forward down inside the penalty area.

Wissa calmly converted from the spot, sending goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov the wrong way to restore parity and ignite wild celebrations among the nearly 70,000 supporters inside the stadium.

Just two minutes later came another historic moment.

Meschack Elia's deflected effort held up perfectly for Fiston Mayele, who reacted quickest to poke home from close range and complete the turnaround, sending the largely Congolese crowd into delirium.

With Uzbekistan pushing for an equaliser, Wissa produced the final flourish in stoppage time, curling a superb effort into the far corner from the edge of the penalty area to seal a memorable 3-1 victory and take his tournament tally to three goals.

The comeback victory completed a remarkable week for the Leopards, who had already ended a 52-year absence from the World Cup by earning a historic draw against Portugal before now recording their first-ever victory on football's biggest stage.

The result also continued what has been an outstanding tournament for African football. DR Congo became the fifth African nation to reach the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time at the 2026 finals, joining Cape Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt and South Africa.

Only Tunisia have been eliminated among Africa's ten representatives so far, while Algeria still have the opportunity to increase the continent's representation in the Round of 32.

For DR Congo, however, history has already been made. After more than half a century away from the global stage, the Leopards are no longer simply participants; they are knockout contenders.