DRC giants brace for in-door Kinshasa Derby

TP Mazembe and FC Saint-Eloi Lupopo meet on Tuesday, 5 May 2026, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)’s Linafoot/Illicocash Ligue 1 play-off battle.

Ahead of the Kinshasa Derby, the Congolese giants are bracing for the challenge of ensuring that their fans do not gatecrash the in-door encounter at Stade Frédéric Kibasa Maliba.

Realising the challenge ahead of the Linafoot/Illicocash Ligue 1 clash, Lupopo supporters’ coordinator Philipe Kibawa has pleaded with the team’s fans to respect the authorities’ directive by staying away from the game.

#Ligue1PlayOffs #DerbyLushois
🏆 Ligue 1 – Play-Offs / Aller
📝 3e Journée
🆚 Football Club Saint Eloi Lupopo
📆 Mardi, 5 mai 2026
🕒 13:00 TU, 15:00 Lubumbashi
🏟️ Stade Frédéric Kibassa Maliba
🌍 Lubumbashi – RDC pic.twitter.com/X5cuD7lmdN

— TP Mazembe (@TPMazembe) May 4, 2026

DRC giants Lupopo plead with fans

In a statement, Kibawa called for discipline from the fans as they monitor the Kinshasa Derby from their homes.

“The management of FC St Eloi Lupopo informs its supporters and the sporting public that, by a decision of the National Secretariat of the National Football League, the derby against TP Mazembe scheduled for Tuesday 05 May 2026 at the Stade Frédéric Kibasa Maliba will be played indoors,” reads the statement.

“The club calls on all its fans to strictly follow this directive from the sporting authorities for the smooth run of the playoffs.”

Mazembe lead the table with three points while Lupopo have one point in the eight-member standings.

Why TP Mazembe and Lupopo will play behind closed doors in Kinshasa Derby

The two teams were penalised to play behind closed doors after their fans were involved in violence when they last met at TP Mazembe Stadium on 8 March 2026.

Supporters of the Lubumbashi rivals were engaged in fist fights, while some threw seats uprooted from the terraces and stones, creating pandemonium which spread onto the pitch, prompting riot police to step in and try to quell the chaos.

In other Linafoot games scheduled for Tuesday, AS Simba will take on FC Les Aigles du Congo while AS Maniema Union date Celeste FC.