Three games, three defeats, 14 goals conceded, none scored – and a moment of defiance that became a global joke. When DR Congo, then Zaire, made their Fifa World Cup debut in 1974, they became the first side from sub-Saharan Africa to reach the finals. But the tournament was a disaster. They lost 2-0 to Scotland, 9-0 to Yugoslavia, and then, trailing 2-0 against Brazil in their final group game, defender Mwepu Ilunga sprinted out of the defensive wall as the defending champions lined up a free-kick, booting the ball downfield. He was booked; ridicule followed. Almost 40 years later, Ilunga told the BBC it was an act of protest. "I was aware of football regulations. I did it on purpose," he said in 2010, five years before his death.
Yet later that same year, the world's eyes returned to the central African country. At huge expense, President Mobutu Sese Seko secured hosting rights for the heavyweight world title clash between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman – the 'Rumble in the Jungle' in Kinshasa. "Geopolitically, President Mobutu really pulled off a media coup because his country was discovered and became known across the world," recalled journalist Justin Kabala Mwana, who covered the bout.
“DR Congo face England 52 years after disastrous 1974 World Cup debut and the 'Rumble in the Jungle'.”
Now, 52 years on from both that dark sporting chapter and one of sport's greatest occasions, DR Congo face England in the last 32 at this year's World Cup on Wednesday (17:00 BST). And like the Rumble in the Jungle, Kabala sees the game in Atlanta as a chance for a country hit hard by conflict and corruption over decades to "regain its unity and dignity".
Congo had been granted independence from Belgium in 1960, but Mobutu seized power in a 1965 military coup and renamed the country Zaire six years later. As he amassed a huge personal fortune, the economy suffered. "The price of copper was slashed drastically – very seriously. Petrol had stopped flowing at the pumps and the World Bank had got involved to steer Zaire's economy," Kabala recalled. Yet the country's footballers were making a mark, claiming three African club titles between 1967 and 1973, the Africa Cup of Nations in 1968 and 1974, and then World Cup qualification.
Will DR Congo's current side, facing England in Atlanta, turn a fresh page – or will history repeat itself?