0-7 to 7-0! Undefeated in 9 games in the world preliminaries, a small island with a population of 160,000, a draw with Jamaica in the final round, a dream come true for the World Cup

The 2026 U.S.-Canada-Mexico World Cup qualifiers have entered a fierce stage. In the past, small countries like Cape Verde created miracles. Now, there is another country with only The small island country with a population of 160,000 will become the second super dark horse. They are Curacao, known as the "Dutch Team Three". I believe many fans are unfamiliar with them. Curacao is an autonomous country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, but they have had their own football association for a long time. Naturally, they have also participated in various CONCACAF competitions. However, baseball is their most popular sports event, so Curacao has always been "obscure".

In a warm-up match with Messi's Argentina team 2 years ago, everyone may have seen the result of a 0-7 defeat. But now, in the penultimate round of the North American qualifiers, the Curacao team defeated the Bermuda team 7-0, leading Group B with 11 points with 3 wins and 2 draws in 5 games. It has once again entered everyone's field of vision. As long as they draw with second-placed Jamaica in the last round away from home, they will advance to the World Cup for the first time.

A large number of Curacao players were born in the Netherlands or grew up in Europe, so the team's lineup is very special: the technical and tactical system is biased toward the Dutch system, and the players' physical conditions are close to European players. Many people play in high-intensity leagues such as the English Championship, Eredivisie, and English League One. The lineup structure is more reasonable than most teams in the same region, and there are no big-name football players. Stars, but overall strength is good, currently ranked 82nd in the world. According to ESPN reports, the small island country of Curacao has a population of 156,000 and a land area of only 444 square kilometers. If they advance to the World Cup finals for the first time, they will become the smallest participating country in the history of the World Cup in terms of land area and population, even smaller than Iceland in 2018.

Curaçao team, from the first stage of qualifying to the present, they have created a series of miracles: First stage: Won 4 games (Haiti, Saint Lucia, Aruba) , Barbados), currently leading Group B with 3 wins and 2 draws undefeated, and being unbeaten for 9 consecutive games is really awesome. In the last round, they will have a life-and-death battle with Jamaica away from home. Curacao only needs one draw to realize their World Cup dream. On the 18th, Jamaica vs Curacao will be the most anticipated showdown in the North American Division. Perhaps a new fairy tale will be born in the football world.