The Democratic Republic of the Congo have exited the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 after a heartbreaking extra-time loss to Algeria, but their most famous supporter has made a lasting impact on football fans and players.
Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, who became an instant fan favourite and social media star for his unique tribute to his nation’s hero Patrice Lumumba, bid farewell to AFCON after a meeting with the Algerian team at their hotel on Wednesday.
Dressed sharply in bright-coloured suits, Mboladinga stood out among the thousands of DR Congo fans by standing still with his right arm raised during all of his team’s games at the tournament.
“The fan who went viral for standing motionless through the full match becomes an AFCON symbol of pride, memory, and resilience,” a fan wrote in a tribute on X.
At the beginning of every match, Mboladinga would step on his pedestal and hold the pose, emulating a memorial statue of Lumumba in Kinshasa, DR Congo.
But when his team were knocked out of the tournament by Algeria with a 119th-minute goal from Adil Boulbina, he was left devastated.
Nicknamed Lumumba Vea by Congolese supporters, Mboladinga took off his glasses, wiped away his tears and, in his final act, fell back into the crowd at the end of his team’s last-16 tie.
To add insult to injury, Mboladinga was apparently mocked by Algerian player Mohamed Amoura, who ran to the Congolese end, mimicked the fan’s pose and fell to the ground in celebration.
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