DR Congo national football team (formerly the Zaire national football team) have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup on one occasion in 1974 when they were known as Zaire. They were the first Sub-Saharan African team to participate in a World Cup Finals. Despite respectable performances against Scotland and Brazil they were defeated in all three matches with a total goal difference of 0–14. Context In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Zairian dictator Mobutu Sese Seko invested heavily in the national football team. It led to continental success, with Zaire winning the African Cup of Nations in 1968 and in March 1974, just three months before their World Cup appearance. After qualifying for the 1974 FIFA World Cup in December 1973, the players were each given a car and a house by Mobutu. The disastrous displays of the Zaire national team were put into a new light in a notable 2002 interview with defender Mwepu Ilunga. According to him, they were informed they would not be paid after their initial 0-2 defeat against Scotland. This led to the Zairian players refusing to play. Even though they were persuaded to show up against Yugoslavia, they were unmotivated and lost 0-9, one of the highest defeats in FIFA World Cup history. "After the match, he (Mobutu) sent his presidential guards to threaten us. They closed the hotel to all journalists and said that if we lost 0-4 to Brazil, none of us would be able to return home", Ilunga is quoted. They lost their final match 0–3. In an interview in 2018, the captain Raoul Kidumu affirmed the reason for the defeat against Yugoslavia. "We were aware that every team received a big qualification bonus [From FIFA, and partially passed on to the players] of half a million dollars. That was our money. We'd been asking for days. We shared the same hotel with the players of Haiti and every day we saw them arrive back with bags full of presents: jewellery, radios, clothes. Bought with their bonus. Meanwhile our Minister of Sport was running around with his bum bag. He was arranging the financial matters with FIFA. On the eve of the game with Yugoslavia he called us together for a meeting. We thought: "Finally!" Until he said he had to share something with us. "Regarding the money, it'll be sent straight to Zaire." That's when we