The tiny Caribbean island of Curaçao has realized its dream of qualifying for the World Cup for the first time. In the deciding match in Jamaica, a one-point win was enough to win Group B and a corresponding ticket to next year’s World Cup in the US, Mexico and Canada.
Curaçao, with about 150,000 residents, is the smallest country to ever qualify for a World Cup. This island off the Caribbean coast of South America is an autonomous country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Almost all of the team’s players were born in the Netherlands, the majority of whom also played football.
After receiving a yellow-red card against Jamaica’s Jon Russell, Curaçao managed to play out a goalless draw. Coach Dick Advocaat watched the historic moment from afar. The 78-year-old man traveled to his native Netherlands for family reasons.
Jamaica, on the other hand, must qualify for the playoffs and find a new coach. After the game, Steve McClaren, who took over the team in July last year, announced his resignation at a press conference.
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“It is the coach’s responsibility to move forward, take responsibility and make decisions in the best interests of the team so they can move forward,” said the 64-year-old Englishman: “After careful consideration and an honest assessment of our current situation and our goals, I have decided to step down as head coach.”
Meanwhile, Haiti returned to the World Cup stage after 52 years with a 2-0 win against Nicaragua. A win and a goalless draw in the duel between Honduras and Costa Rica helped the country participate in the World Cup for the first time since 1974. Panama also secured a direct ticket with a 3-0 win against El Salvador. Suriname, on the other hand, will have to wait for its World Cup debut. The country lost 3-1 in Guatemala but has another chance in the playoffs.
