Super Eagles head coach, Eric Chelle, has accused DR Congo players of engaging in “voodoo” practices during their penalty shootout victory over Nigeria in Sunday’s CAF World Cup play-off final.
The match ended 1-1 after extra time, as Frank Onyeka gave Nigeria an early lead, while Meschak Elia drew things level for DR Congo. The Congolese side won 4-3 on penalties to seal a spot in the inter-confederation play-offs in March 2026 and eliminated Nigeria from qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
After Chancel Mbemba scored the decisive penalty, Chelle angrily confronted DR Congo’s technical team and had to be held back by members of Nigeria’s staff.
While DR Congo coach Sébastien Desabre later called the incident insignificant, Chelle was still fuming when he spoke at his post-match press conference. First speaking in French, he accused the Congolese players of “maraboutage” – a term tied to spiritual or supernatural rituals. He repeated the allegation in English. “During all of the penalties, the players of Congo were doing some voodoo.
A DR Congo representative dismissed the claims when contacted by The Athletic.
DR Congo now heads to the six-team inter-confederation play-offs that will be staged in March 2026 in North America. They join New Caledonia and Bolivia, while the final Asian slot will go to one of Iraq or the UAE. Costa Rica and Curaçao currently occupy CONCACAF’s two play-off positions.
Once the six teams are confirmed, seedings will be determined through FIFA rankings. The top two teams will go directly to the final round of their pathways, while the remaining four compete in single-leg semi-finals. Winners of the two pathways will claim the last spots at the 2026 World Cup. Chelle’s claims of spiritual interference add another layer of drama to an already heated encounter.
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