Haiti are going to the FIFA World Cup 2026 after 52 years. I mean, this is exactly why I love the World Cup. The World Cup is not just a Football tournament; of course, it crowns the best Football nation in the world. But it is also about the narrative, the stories of these small nations making it to the very top of mountains and locking horns with the giants. And Haiti’s story is not just a fairytale; it’s inspirational.
A country fighting through chaos, loss, and instability has carried itself to the pinnacle of World Football, the FIFA World Cup.
They did not play a single home match. Their capital, Port-au-Prince, has been under the control of gangs. Their national stadium was taken over in March 2024. Since 2021, they have been on the road, playing every match in borrowed grounds with borrowed crowds. Most teams lean on home support at some point. Haiti did not have that privilege.
Yet they still walked into the final matchday with a clear chance; they needed to have a better result than Honduras, and that’s exactly what they did. They beat Nicaragua 2-0 with goals from Ruben Providence and Louicius Deedson, a clean and well-deserved win. They handled the pressure in a neutral stadium in Curacao, but it is what happened after full-time that was notable.
They had done their part and now had to wait to see what happened in the Costa Rica vs. Honduras match. The whole team gathered in a huddle to watch the game on someone’s phone, and when the full-time whistle blew in that game and they found out that Haiti was going to the World Cup, the whole squad just couldn’t hold back their emotions.
HAITI ARE INTO THEIR FIRST WORLD CUP IN HALF A CENTURY ❤️ pic.twitter.com/GozOLqXUBb
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) November 19, 2025
Those emotions say a lot about what this World Cup qualification means for them. You cannot separate this team from the state of their country. A president was assassinated in 2021. Constant unrest. City after city falling under criminal control. Travel disruptions. Training issues. Players have to prepare for circumstances that most national sides will never experience. After all of this, being in contention was in itself an achievement, but the fact that they actually went all the way is remarkable.
The expanded FIFA World Cup means we will see more stories of nations like Curacao and Haiti, and it is these stories that make football more than just a sport.
