Stade des Martyrs

The Pentecost Martyrs Stadium (French: Stade des Martyrs de la Pentecôte), commonly referred to as the Stade des Martyrs and formerly known as Stade Kamanyola, is a national multi-purpose stadium of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located in Lingwala, Kinshasa. With a seating capacity of 80,000, it is the largest stadium in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the fourth-largest stadium in Africa. It serves as the home stadium for the Congolese football national team, Association Sportive Vita Club, and Daring Club Motema Pembe, making it the largest multifunctional venue in the country.

Originally constructed in 1993, the stadium was renamed in 1997 to honor the ministers, including Évariste Kimba, Jérôme Anany, Emmanuel Bamba, and Alexandre Mahamba, who were publicly hanged in Léopoldville (present-day Kinshasa) on Pentecost, 2 June 1966.

It hosted the 2023 Jeux de la Francophonie, which accommodated approximately 3,000 athletes from over 40 countries.

Originally named "Stade Kamanyola," the name has its origins in the Kamanyola groupement, within the Walungu Territory of South Kivu Province. This border area became symbolically important to the regime of President Mobutu Sese Seko following a decisive 1964 military victory by the Armée Nationale Congolaise (ANC) against the Mulelist insurgency. The campaign, which secured the Kamanyola Bridge and contributed to the liberation of Bukavu from forces loyal to Jean Schramme, was led by Major-General Léonard Mulamba and Masiala. It was during these conflicts that Donatien Mahele Lieko Bokungu, then a young Warrant Officer, first distinguished himself, later rising to prominence in the national army.

In recognition of these military achievements, Mobutu memorialized the name Kamanyola across several state assets and personal possessions, including a presidential yacht, a military division, and subsequently commissioned the construction of "Stade Kamanyola". The stadium project was formalized through a memorandum of understanding signed in May 1987 between the Republic of Zaire and the People's Republic of China. Construction began on 14 October 1988, a date symbolically chosen to coincide with Mobutu's birthday, and concluded exactly five years later on 14 October 1993. The facility, with a seating capacity of 80,000, was constructed by a Chinese consortium at a cost of approximately $38 million.

Stade Kamanyola was officially inaugurated on 14 September 1994 with a friendly match between the Leopards of Zaire and the Flames of Malawi. It replaced Stade Tata Raphaël as the country's principal sports venue and became a centerpiece of Mobutu's vision for monumental state infrastructure. In addition to hosting matches for the national football team and top Kinshasa clubs, the stadium also accommodated fixtures involving Tout Puissant Mazembe, a prominent club based in Lubumbashi.

Following the ousting of Mobutu from power by AFDL (Alliance des Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération du Congo-Zaïre) led by Laurent-Désiré Kabila in 1997, the stadium was renamed "Stade des Martyrs de la Pentecôte" in memory of four ministers purged by Mobutu Sese Seko and hanged at the site on 2 June 1966: Évariste Kimba, Jérôme Anany, Emmanuel Bamba, and Alexandre Mahamba. Tragedy revisited the venue in 1998 during the Second Congo War, when government troops opened fire during a football match between AS Vita Club and Daring Club Motema Pembe, resulting in four fatalities.

On 5 December 2004, the Democratic Republic of the Congo achieved its first victory over South Africa in a historic match at the Stade des Martyrs. On 12–14 October 2012, the venue played host to the 14th summit of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. From 28 July to 6 August 2023, the Stade des Martyrs presided over the IXes Jeux de la Francophonie, a notable multi-sport event, marking the first occasion that the games were held in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.