Coupe du Congo (DR Congo)
Tournament in Congolese football
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Coupe du Congo is the top knockout tournament of the Congolese (DR Congo) football. It officially started in 1958 and it has served as the country's main competition to determine the national champion (1958–1989, and 1992–1997)) or the cup winner (1990-1991 and 1998-present).
DR Congo(1st title)
(15th titles)
| Founded | 1958 |
|---|---|
| Region | DR Congo |
| Current champions | DC Virunga (2026) (1st title) |
| Most championships | DC Motema Pembe (15th titles) |
 2026 Coupe du Congo | |
History
In 1950 a cup tournament was played in a week-long competition with the final on May 1, 1950, at the Stade Leopold II in Elisabethville (now Lubumbashi), with an attendance of over 40,000. Selections of regional provinces participated instead of clubs.
The first official competition of the Coupe de l'A.R.S.C.U. was played in 1958. FC Saint-Éloi Lupopo (Elizabethville) was the first winner. The 1959 was not concluded and it was not held until 1963. In 1964 the Cup was renamed to Coupe du Congo and also served as the national championship from 1964 to 1989 and from 1992 to 1997.[a]
The tournaments for the sixth (1969) and seventh (1970) edition of the Coupe du Congo were not finished and the title was not awarded in either year, but TP Englebert (1969) and AS Vita Club (1970) were chosen to represent the country in the African Champions Cup in the following year. Those "titles" are not included in the list below.
While the Coupe du Congo served as the national championship before Linafoot was created, they were other competitions considered as cup tournaments: the Papa Kalala Challenge (1982-1989) and the Independence Cup (1992-1997). Since 1998, the Coupe du Congo is the country's primer Cup competition (likewise in 1991).
Format
The four tournaments from 1965 to 1968 were decided in a mini-group stage with three or four participants, and no final was played.
Name history
- 1958–59: Coupe de l'A.R.S.C.U. (as national championship)
- 1964–1971: Coupe du Congo (as national championship)
- 1972–1989: Coupe du Zaïre (as national championship)
- 1990–1991: Coupe du Zaïre (as national cup tournament)
- 1992–1996: Coupe du Zaïre (as national championship)
- 1997: Coupe du Congo (as national championship)
- 1998–present: Coupe du Congo (as national cup tournament)
List of finals
As national championship
Winner per year[1]
As national cup
As national championship
As national cup
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Total titles per club
| Club | Titles |
|---|---|
| DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) (Includes CS Imana) | 15 |
| AS Vita Club (Kinshasa) | 10 |
| AS Dragons (Kinshasa) (Includes AS Bilima) | 5 |
| TP Mazembe (Lubumbashi) (Includes TP Englebert) | 5 |
| AS Kalamu (Kinshasa) | 4 |
| FC Saint-Éloi Lupopo (Lubumbashi) | 3 |
| AS Maniema Union (Kindu) | 3 |
| FC MK Etanchéité (Kinshasa) | 2 |
| FC Lubumbashi Sport | 1 |
| AC Sodigraf (Kinshasa) | 1 |
| AS Vita Kabasha (Goma) | 1 |
| US Kenya (Lubumbashi) | 1 |
| SC Cilu (Lukala) | 1 |
| US Bilombe (Bilombe) | 1 |
| OC Bukavu Dawa (Bukavu) | 1 |
| US Tshinkunku (Kananga) | 1 |
| CS Don Bosco (Lubumbashi) | 1 |
| FC Renaissance (Kinshasa) | 1 |
| AS Nyuki (Butembo) | 1 |
| AS Simba (Kolwezi) | 1 |
| DC Virunga (Goma) | 1 |
Records and statistics
- Pierre Kasongo was the first goalscorer in the history of the cup, in a 5-1 victory for St Eloi against AS Vita Club in the final on 27 December 1958.
- Pierre Ndaye Mulamba is the only player to have scored 6 goals in a cup final, in the final against FC Lupopo in 1973.
- Platini Mpiana is the only player to win the competition with 3 different clubs (AS Maniema Union in 2019, DCMP Imana in 2022 and AS Vita Club in 2024).
Players
Most finals
This list is incomplete.
| Player | Total | Years won | Years lost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ndaye Mulamba |
7 | 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1988 | 1981 |
| Epangala Lukose |
4 | 1993, 1994, 1997 | 1995 |
| N'Dinga Mbote |
3 | 1988, 1997, 2001 | - |
| Platini Mpiana |
3 | 2019, 2022, 2024 | - |
| Pierre Kalala Mukendi |
3 | 1966, 1967 | 1972 |
| Mpangi Merikani |
3 | 1987, 1989 | 1988 |
Other DR Congo cup competitions
Governor General's Cup (1950)
It was played between regional or city selections during colonial time.
- 1950: Katanga - Léopoldville 2-1
Challenge Papa Kalala (1982-1989)
The winners qualified for the CAF Cup Winners Cup.
- 1982: AS Vita Club (Kinshasa)
- 1983: AS Vita Club (Kinshasa) - FC St-Eloi Lupopo (Lubumbashi) 2-1
- 1984: CS Imana (Kinshasa) - AS Vita Club (Kinshasa) 1-2, 1-0 [Imana on away goals]
- 1985: DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) - FC Kalamu (Kinshasa) 2-0
- 1986: FC Kalamu (Kinshasa)
- 1987: FC Kalamu (Kinshasa)
- 1988: FC Kalamu (Kinshasa) - DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) 1-0
- 1989: FC Kalamu (Kinshasa)
Coupe de la Fécofa (2001-2003)
- 2001: Utexafrica (Kinshasa) - Inter (Kinshasa) 0-0 [aet, 4-1 pen]
- 2002: DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) - Inter (Kinshasa) 1-0
- 2003: abandoned
Coupe de l'Indépendance (1992-1997)
- 1992: DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) - AS Vita Club (Kinshasa) 0-0 1-0
- 1993: DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) - AS Bilima (Kinshasa) 2-1
- 1994: DC Motema Pembe (Kinshasa) - AS Bantous (Mbuji-Mayi) 2-0
- 1995: AC Sodigraf (Kinshasa) - DC Mbongo Sport (Mbuji-Mayi) 4-0
- 1996: AS Bilima (Kinshasa) - AC Sodigraf (Kinshasa) 3-2
- 1997: AS Dragons (Kinshasa) - AS Vita Club (Kinshasa) 2-1
Jeux Congolais/Zaïrois (1967-1974)
Multisports events held on three occasions; the first two were staged in Kinshasa, the third in Lubumbashi.
- 1967: Katanga - Kinshasa 3-2
- 1972: CS Imana (Kinshasa)
- 1974: CS Imana (Kinshasa) - TP Englebert (Lubumbashi) 3-2
See also
Notes
- Some city name changes (mostly mid-1966):
- Bakwanga to Mbuji-Mayi, Coquilhatville to Mbandaka,
- Elisabethville to Lubumbashi, Jadotville to Likasi,
- Léopoldville to Kinshasa, Luluabourg to Kananga,
- Stanleyville to Kisangani, Thysville to Mbanza-Ngungu