The famous Barcelona star laid the foundation for Curacao, but he was not the one who led the team to the World Cup

Kluivert’s mark: Curacao’s miracle of reaching the World Cup

FC Barcelona

After the small Caribbean island of Curacao qualified for the 2026 World Cup for the first time in history, the whole island fell into carnival. Behind this miraculous promotion, there is a former Barcelona legendary forward named Patrick Kluivert, who is one of the important creators of this change.

The whole country in Curacao celebrates, and a historic moment is born.

In the early morning of November 20, 2025, Curacao was completely different from usual. Schools across the country were suspended spontaneously, and people took to the streets, waving blue and yellow national flags, to celebrate the team's first entry into the World Cup finals in history. This small island with a population of only 155,000 and an area of ​​only 444 square kilometers has become the World Cup participating country with the lowest FIFA ranking (82nd) ​​and the smallest land area.

Curaçao is located in the Caribbean Sea. Since 2010, it has separated from the Netherlands Antilles and has become an autonomous territory under the Kingdom of the Netherlands. This special political relationship allows residents to have dual citizenship and also facilitates the national team to absorb a large number of players with Curacao ancestry who were born in the Netherlands.

In this historic moment of national excitement, one name was mentioned repeatedly: Patrick Kluivert.

Barcelona legend returns to "Mother's Land"

Kluivert played for Barcelona from 1998 to 2004. With his keen sense of smell in front of the goal and calm shooting skills, he became the classic No. 9 in the hearts of a generation of fans. However, in March 2015, when he accepted the position of head coach of the Curacao national team, the European football world was somewhat surprised - this star forward who had won the Champions League with Ajax and scored 40 goals on behalf of the Dutch national team actually chose to coach a small Caribbean country.

But for Kluivert, this is by no means a hunting trip. His mother, Lidvina Kluivert, was born in Curacao, where his bloodline originates. "My mother is from this island, and I wanted to do something for her and here, so I came." He said frankly in an interview with the "Observer", "The Football Association asked me if I would take over, and I did not hesitate. I still have many relatives here, and it makes me feel like home."

Building a national identity from scratch

After Kluivert took office, he quickly injected discipline, professionalism and cohesion into this grassroots team. He actively contacted players who were of Curacao descent but were born and raised in the Netherlands and persuaded them to join the national team. He not only called players together, he listened to them, inspired them with a sense of belonging, and gave the team a clear identity.

Although Kluivert's tenure in Curacao was not long due to subsequent coaching opportunities in Europe, the foundation he laid was crucial: he led the team to successfully advance to the 2017 Caribbean Cup and CONCACAF Gold Cup - this was the first time in 40 years that Curacao returned to the Gold Cup stage.

On an unforgettable night, he once said what became widely circulated at the Elgerio Hato National Stadium in Willemstad, the capital: "Here, the coaching certificate is not important at all." It was after a 0-0 draw with Cuba. The enthusiasm of tens of thousands of fans at the scene made him deeply realize: the Curacao people's love for football is a true emotion that comes from the heart and needs no modification.

Ten years of hard work, finally a miracle

Today, ten years later, Curacao tied its opponent 0-0 in an away game in Kingston, Jamaica, and relied on this result to secure a ticket to the World Cup. Sitting on the coaching bench at this time is another famous Dutch coach - 78-year-old Dick Advocaat (who led the Dutch team to participate in the 1994 World Cup in the United States). But everyone knows that without the seeds sown by Kluivert, there would be no fruits today.

The "Made in the Netherlands" Curacao team

It is worth mentioning that the 23 players who went to Jamaica this time were all born in the Netherlands, but without exception they all have Curacao ancestry. Many of them play in secondary leagues such as the Turkish League or the Eredivisie:

Obispo, Fonvir, Floranus and Sambo are currently playing in Dutch clubs;

the Bacuna brothers - Uniño and captain Leandro —— will compete in the Turkish Super League;

Forward Jurgen Locadia has not yet found a new club after leaving the Spanish third-division team Intercity in May this year, because Tahith, the only player originally born in Curacao, Chong, who plays for Sheffield United in the English Championship) was injured and he was called up to the team on an emergency basis.