Curacao World Cup qualification a 'divine journey': federation president

Curacao players celebrate after scoring a goal in a friendly against Australia in Melbourne in March (WILLIAM WEST)

(WILLIAM WEST/AFP/AFP)

The president of the Curacao football federation, Gilbert Martina, has told AFP that the tiny Caribbean country's road to the World Cup has been a "divine journey" which began at the start of the century.

The 'Blue Wave' created one of last year's most romantic sports stories when they qualified top of their group after a nerve-jangling 0-0 draw in November with Jamaica which only came about when the Reggae Boyz had an added-time penalty ruled out.

The result meant the island, which is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and lies just 60 kilometres off the Venezuela coast, becomes the smallest nation ever to reach the World Cup finals.

It covers an area of 444 square km and has just under 160,000 inhabitants, around 4,000 of which are registered footballers: baseball remains the number one sport.

"It has been a process, a journey that began in 2010, in 2000, with a lot of effort, a lot of sacrifices, many lows but also many highs, which culminated in qualification on November 18, when it was clearly visible that this was meant to be," says Martina, referring to that disallowed penalty.

"Qualification is not just a football story, it is a source of inspiration, of pride. It is an identity."

The feel-good factor was dampened in February, however, by the news that their veteran Dutch coach Dick Advocaat was stepping down to care for his sick daughter.

He has been replaced by another Dutch coach in Fred Rutten, former manager of FC Twente, PSV Eindhoven, Feyenoord and Schalke 04, with Martina rejecting reports that Advocaat would be on hand to act as a consultant during the World Cup.

"Fred Rutten is the head coach and Dick is not an advisor for Fred," he told AFP.

"Two captains on a ship has never worked and that will not work here. So it's Fred for us."

• 'Achieving the impossible' -

Martina sees Curacao's qualification as "a divine journey" which involved a large slice of self-belief.

"We lack resources, infrastructure... we could endlessly list everything we don't have," says the man who doubles up as a motivational author.

"But there are two things we do not lack: spirit and mentality.

"Once we align our minds and our goals with something greater than ourselves, we can achieve an enormous amount.

"Everything is impossible until it is done. And only those who can see the invisible can do the impossible.

"The players play not only for themselves, for the families, but for the whole nation.

"They play based on purpose. Once you align your individual purpose with a greater purpose, then the magic happens.

"You start being in service for a greater purpose, which will make things that seem to be impossible become possible. And that's what happened with Curacao."

The reward for Curacao is a place in Group E where they will face four-time winners Germany, African powerhouses Ivory Coast and Ecuador, who finished second in South American qualifying behind only Argentina.

The quality of the opposition and the absence of Advocaat, however, doesn't appear to be worrying Martina.

"If we can recapture the same energy and mindset as in the qualifying match against Jamaica, many things can happen," he says.

"The ambition is to qualify for the second round at least, and from there, everything is possible.

"But first things first. Let's see how we can get a couple of points. I mean, with three to four points, you almost have one foot in the second round."

• Legacy -

Martina, however, doesn't just want the 2026 World Cup for Curacao. His aim now is also to create a lasting legacy for football in Curacao with a fit-for-purpose administration.

"We have a local saying: 'The fish starts rotting from the head'. In other words, if the federation's leadership is not at peace, not properly structured, if good governance is not in place, that will be reflected on the pitch.

"Our task is to ensure we create a sustainable federation, one that has the means to invest in infrastructure, in governance and in youth development," he says.

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