Ebola fears lead Spanish mayor to cancel DR Congo's World Cup warm-up match

A planned friendly football match between the national teams of DR Congo and Chile, set to take place in the southern Spanish city of Cadiz next week, has been canceled. The decision was announced by the mayor of La Línea de la Concepción.

The cancellation stems from concerns over potential Ebola transmission. The central African nation has recently experienced an outbreak of the virus, prompting the mayor to prohibit the match as a precautionary measure. "I have signed the decree prohibiting the holding of the match on June 9 between DR Congo and Chile," stated Mayor Juan Franco, according to AFP.

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I have signed the decree prohibiting the holding of the match on June 9 between DR Congo and Chile.

Mayor Franco described the cancellation as a security measure, based on recommendations from the regional government of Andalusia. "We regret that we had to make this decision, as a match of this nature is an asset to the city," he added, as reported by Europa Sur. He further explained that there was insufficient documentation to guarantee that the match would be free from contagion risk.

Meanwhile, Denmark is still scheduled to play DR Congo on Thursday in Liège, Belgium. This match has not been affected by the concerns that led to the cancellation in Spain.

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We regret that we had to make this decision, as a match of this nature is an asset to the city.