DRC-Linafoot: Céleste falls to Maniema Union (1-3) in the play-offs

Kinshasa, June 14^th, 2026 (CPA). – Céleste FC of Mbandaka, in Equateur Province, western Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), suffered a 3-1 defeat against AS Maniema Union of Kindu, from the country’s centre-east, on Sunday at Tata Raphaël Stadium in Kinshasa during the 12th round of the Linafoot play-offs. During the first half, Maniema Union dominated proceedings, with Benny Namboka scoring twice in the 20th and 37th minutes to give his side a comfortable 2-0 lead at the break. After halftime, Maniema Union maintained the same intensity, and Benny Namboka completed his hat-trick in the 80th minute, extending the lead to 3-0. Céleste eventually responded through Tuti Dianvula, who pulled one goal back in the 90th minute, but it was not enough to prevent a 3-1 victory for the Kindu-based club. Following this defeat, Céleste remains at the bottom of the standings with three points from 12 matches. Maniema Union, meanwhile, strengthened its third-place position with 22 points from 12 outings.
Les Aigles du Congo edge Simba 1-0
In another match of the 12th round of the 31st Linafoot play-offs, FC Les Aigles du Congo of Kinshasa secured a narrow 1-0 victory over AS Simba of Kolwezi, from Lualaba Province in southeastern DRC, on Sunday at the Kurara Mpova Technical Center in Nsele, east of the capital. The only goal of the match was scored by Talasi Madudu in the 60th minute.
The victory lifted Les Aigles du Congo to the top of the standings with 25 points from 12 matches, while AS Simba remained in seventh place with seven points from the same number of fixtures.
V.Club held to a 1-1 draw by Don Bosco
In another encounter played at Tata Raphaël Stadium in Kinshasa, AS V.Club was held to a 1-1 draw by Don Bosco of Lubumbashi, Haut-Katanga Province, on Sunday in the 12th round of the Linafoot championship. V.Club opened the scoring through Manima Kingoma in the 15th minute, before Don Bosco equalized in the 89th minute thanks to Molindo Mbala.
The draw dealt a major blow to the Kinshasa-based Black Dolphins, whose hopes of qualifying for African inter-club competitions effectively came to an end with 18 points collected from 12 matches. Meanwhile, in the Lubumbashi derby, TP Mazembe and Saint-Éloi Lupopo played out a goalless draw on Sunday at TP Mazembe Stadium in a match also counting towards the 12th round of the DRC’s top-flight football championship.