Nothing more surreal than a Caribbean island of 185,000 inhabitants making its World Cup debut with 25 players born in the Netherlands. 🏝️😂
That’s Curaçao: the only player born on the island is Tahith Chong, and even he grew up in Rotterdam and played for the Netherlands U-21 team. The coach, Dick Advocaat, is also Dutch.
The explanation exists: Curaçao has been an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 2010, which led to decades of migration and football development in Europe.
Juninho Bacuna admitted it bluntly: “I had no chance of playing for the Netherlands, so I chose Curaçao.” 🧡And now that unusual plan has a reward: its first World Cup, in Group E, against Germany, Ecuador, and Ivory Coast. Is it cheating or is it genius?