AFCON 2015: Congo Rescued by Opponents Burkina Faso After Bus Breakdown in Equatorial Guinea
In a remarkable twist of events at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, Congo’s national team – the Red Devils – found themselves stranded deep in the equatorial forest of Equatorial Guinea after their team bus broke down en route to their final Group A match in Ebebiyin.
Having played their first two matches in Bata, the Congolese squad was making the lengthy overland journey to their next venue when mechanical failure brought their journey to an abrupt halt. The incident occurred on Friday, leaving players and staff stuck in the humid, forested terrain with no immediate assistance in sight.
The team’s head coach, Claude Le Roy, had previously expressed frustration with the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) transport arrangements. “I won’t wait for the CAF plane that will never arrive,” Le Roy said on RFI’s Radio Foot Internationale a day earlier, choosing instead to travel by road. But his confidence in ground travel met an unexpected setback.
Ironically — and perhaps symbolically — it was their next opponents, Burkina Faso, who came to their aid. The Stallions’ team bus happened to be passing by the same road and stopped to assist their Sunday rivals, offering them a ride to safety.
The moment of sportsmanship highlighted the unique camaraderie that exists even amid fierce continental competition. Congo and Burkina Faso will face off in their final Group A clash with qualification to the knockout stages on the line.
