Football scouts search for talent in DR Congo's turbulent east
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Alexis's eyes shine brightly as he holds a football trophy aloft in a stadium in Goma, a city in the Democratic Republic of Congo's conflict-torn east.
The young footballer has emerged victorious after a four-day tournament in the city, which — in a rarity for the region — was attended by international scouts.
«The cup, it's a reward for my efforts,» says Alexis Isese Chuma, 18, who adds that playing before talent spotters «is an opportunity that doesn't come along twice in a lifetime».
Militias have ravaged eastern DRC for three decades, a legacy of regional wars that flared during the 1990s and 2000s.
Since late 2021, the M23 rebel group has also captured swathes of territory in the region, and come close to encircling Goma.
Despite the strife, the founder of Goma's GOAL Football Academy, Ugo Kasuku, organised a tournament this month and invited three European football scouts.
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FootballFormer DRC midfielder Michel Dinzey, now a scout for Hertha Berlin, one of the many teams he played for in Germany's Bundesliga, turned up.
As did Harry Varley for top Belgian side Gent and Distel Zola, a scout for Ligue 1side Monaco — and an idol for many of the young players.
«It's a talent pool,» said Zola, a former DRC international who spent most of his own playing career in France where he was born.
Zola told AFP it was important to promote «peace and joy» as well as «demonstrate the beauty» of the region that has been devastated by violence.
To boot, he said he had spotted some promising players.
«I saw a lot of maturity in the captain of DC Virunga, despite his young age,» he said picking out 18
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