Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: FIFA, Football, Netherlands
Luke Davies
A tiny island with a population of just 150,000 can still secure a place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
New Zealand, Argentina, IR Iran, Japan and the three host nations – the USA, Mexico and Canada – have already booked their places at next summer’s finals.
And this week, a further five countries could qualify if results go their way. Of course, the next World Cup will see 48 teams compete, whereas in 2022, just 32 entered the competition.
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This provides several countries with their first chance of appearing at the tournament, with up to nine nations still able to qualify for a maiden World Cup.
Jordan, Uzbekistan, Cabo Verde, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Suriname, Venezuela and New Caledonia are all teams that could still make debut appearances.
But another nation with a population less than UK towns such as Warrington, Slough, and Oxford could still qualify.
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Curacao, currently 90th in the FIFA rankings, sit in a strong position in Group C of the Concacaf qualification phase.
The island, which boasts a population of around 150,000 people, have never qualified for a World Cup previously.
In 1914, the nations of the nearby Dutch Caribbean colonies joined to form the Netherlands Antilles.
In 2010, the Netherlands Antilles dissolved, and Curacao became a nation within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
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Like nearby Suriname, several Dutch footballers were born or have an ancestry in the country.
Former Newcastle United, Ajax and Leeds United midfielder Vurnon Anita was born in the country's capital city of Willemstad.
Anita, 36, made three appearances for the Netherlands in 2010 before going on to feature 17 times for Curacao.
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Ex-Aston Villa, Reading and Cardiff man Leandro Bacuna also plays for Curacao through his parents despite being born in Groningen, Netherlands.
The nation will face St. Lucia at home on June 6 before a trip to Haiti on June 10.
As things stand, Curaçao and Haiti have won both of their first two World Cup qualifiers and sit top of Group C on six points.
St. Lucia and Aruba have one point each, while Barbados sustained two defeats.