Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The smallest nation by population in the tournament comes face-to-face with the four-time winners on Sunday when tiny Curacao play Germany in a true World Cup fairytale.
Issued on: 14/06/2026 - 11:14
3 min Reading time
Curacao fans cheer for their team during a pre-tournament friendly in the Caribbean nation © Pong Pong / AFP
Curacao, a Caribbean island of 160,000 people, is making its World Cup debut, a beneficiary of FIFA's decision to expand the field to 48 teams this year.Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann described the match in Houston as a meeting of "David and Goliath" while his opposite number Dick Advocaat believes his charges can "steal some points".The Curacao players' carefree attitude has already won admirers with players singing and dancing bare-chested on the team bus in a viral social media post."We are a nation that loves to have a little bit of a party as well," said captain Leandro Bacuna. "We love to have fun."Advocaat, 78, is the oldest coach in World Cup history.
