Global finals spot at stake as Congo DR face Jamaica
Read on for details on how to watch, kick-off times, players to watch and more.
A final chance to play in the FIFA World Cup 2026™ will be there for the taking when Congo DR collide with Jamaica at Guadalajara Stadium.
You can purchase tickets to the FIFA Play-Off Tournament here. You can also stream the match for free on FIFA+ (available in most territories).
15:00 in Guadalajara 22:00 in Kinshasa 16:00 in Kingston
Through the twists and turns of CAF qualifying, Congo DR always kept an even keel and their reward is a winner-take-all affair to punch their ticket to their first World Cup since 1974. The Leopards finished second in their section behind Senegal and then promptly eliminated continental giants Cameroon and Nigeria in the CAF play-offs to secure their spot in the Play-Off Tournament. Since being on the ground in Mexico, the momentum has continued with a commanding 2-0 friendly win over Bermuda, setting themselves up for this Jamaica clash.
The Reggae Boyz missed an opportunity to reach their first global finals since France 1998 on the last day of Concacaf qualifying, but the Play-Off Tournament has offered a second chance and they completed step one of the job in a 1-0 win over New Caledonia. Interim coach Rudolph Speid used a pragmatic approach in the victory and will now look to take advantage of Jamaica's tremendous array of playmakers to break down the Congolese defence.
Congo DR coach Sebastien Desabre can take comfort that his strikers arrived into Mexico in great form, evidenced by Fiston Mayele's performance against Bermuda in which he stood out with a goal. Another piece of good news was Yoane Wissa, a player who recently overcame a long-term injury, finding the back of the net. Those two, along with Cedric Bakambu, offer the African side plenty of attacking punch.
It would make sense for Speid to ride the hot hand of striker Bailey Cadamarteri, who struck for the lone goal against New Caledonia. Two of Jamaica's top playmakers, Bobby De Cordova-Reid and Leon Bailey, came off the bench in the second half, so it will be interesting to see if Speid opts to give the two European-based attackers the starting nod in what should be a terrific duel between two sides lethal in transition.
"We’re really fired up. We’re still on course to meet our main objective. That’s the goal we set ourselves when I took this job three-and-a-half years ago. This final will be our 13th match since our qualifying campaign began." Sebastien Desabre, Congo DR coach
"It’s going to be a tough game. There are some things we are going to have to work on, but the next one, it doesn’t matter how, we just need to win the game and we are looking forward to it." Andre Blake, Jamaica goalkeeper
This is the first match between Congo DR and Jamaica.
Congo DR’s only previous official ‘A’ match against a Concacaf team was a 2-1 away defeat to Mexico in a May 2006 friendly (they also played Bermuda in a ‘training match’ on 25 March 2026 in Guadalajara and won 2-0).
Congo DR have lost only one of their last ten World Cup qualifying matches (W7 D2).
Jamaica’s overall record against CAF teams is P22 W2 D11 L9. Their most recent encounter was a 2-2 draw with Nigeria in a friendly tournament in England in May 2025, with Nigeria winning 5-4 on penalties.
Jamaica have won nine of their past 12 World Cup qualifying matches (D2 L1).
Jamaica have kept seven clean sheets in their past nine World Cup qualifying matches.
The winner advances to World Cup 2026 Group K with Colombia, Portugal and Uzbekistan.