Curacao become smallest nation to qualify for football World Cup

The tiny Caribbean nation of Curacao became the smallest country ever to qualify for the football World Cup, as they sealed their place in the 2026 edition on Tuesday after battling to a 0-0 draw against Jamaica in Kingston.

Curacao, with a population of just 156,000 people, fought off a furious second-half onslaught from the Reggae Boyz to grab the draw they needed to clinch their ticket to the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Curacao, whose veteran Dutch coach Dick Advocaat was forced to miss the game due to a family issue in the Netherlands, were left celebrating a historic result.

The result capped a fairytale qualification campaign for the team known as the ‘Blue Wave’, who finished top of Group B with 12 points from six games, one point clear of Jamaica.

Curacao are by far the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup, which is being expanded to 48 teams next year for the first time.

The previous smallest country to qualify for the tournament was Iceland in 2018, with a population of around 350,000.

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Curacao finally booked their place after an extraordinary finale at Kingston’s National Stadium, where Jamaica, coached by former England manager Steve McClaren, launched a furious onslaught as they chased the win which would guarantee them a World Cup place at their opponent’s expense.

The Jamaicans hit the woodwork three times in the second half, with substitute Bailey-Tye Cadamarteri going agonizingly close with a header that crashed off the post in the 87th minute.

There was more drama in store in stoppage time, when Jamaica were awarded a penalty after substitute Jeremy Antonisse’s sliding tackle brought down Dujuan Richards in the area.

Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton pointed to the spot to leave Curacao facing the prospect of a heartbreaking defeat.

But as Curacao’s players protested, the decision went to VAR and was dramatically overturned to leave the Caribbean islanders on course for the World Cup.

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