Meet 2026 World Cup debutants: Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan, Uzbekistan
Every soccer fan desires of seeing their nation in a World Cuphowever for a lot of of FIFA’s 211 member associations, that ambition stays simply that: a dream.
However, the enlargement of soccer’s showpiece occasion to 48 groups for the 2026 event, which is co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United Statesyou will have left the door ajar to nations who beforehand would have fallen quick, whereas different international locations have hit their stride at simply the fitting time with golden generations driving them to qualification for his or her maiden finals.
The file for World Cup debutants (other than the primary event in 1930) is six. Angola, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago and Ukraine all made their bows on the 2006 competitors.
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While as many as 9 potential newcomers had been within the combine for 2026 heading into the March playoffs, solely 4 of these groups might be on the bottom when the competitors kicks off on June 11.
Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan have punched their tickets, however what will we find out about these nations, each on and off the pitch? For most followers world wide who’ll be watching this summer time, it isn’t a complete lot.
We spoke to an knowledgeable from every debutant nation to get higher acquainted with 2026’s World Cup underdogs.
A volcanic archipelago of 10 islands off Africa’s West Coast, Cape Verde secured their spot by profitable Group D in Africa, beating Cameroon to prime spot.
With a inhabitants of simply 525,000, Cape Verde is the third-smallest nation by inhabitants to qualify for a World Cup, after Iceland in 2018 and fellow 2026 debutants Curaçao. The decisive win got here on Oct.13 when Cape Verde overcame Eswatini 3-0 on house soil, sparking wild celebrations within the capital Praia.
“On the day of the Eswatini game I was trying to conserve energy, but my stomach was dancing with nerves,” Cape Verde defender Roberto ‘Pico’ Lopes instructed ESPN.
“I was supposed to have a pre-game nap but then one of the other players got out the speakers and started playing music. We all started dancing. And then it’s like we knew that everything was going to be okay, it had to be our day.”
Music, and meals, have been a giant a part of bonding the Cape Verde crew who come collectively from everywhere in the world for his or her worldwide fixtures.
“Music is a huge part of the dressing-room atmosphere,” Lopes stated. “We play traditional songs, funaná music, a mix of old and modern. We eat Cachupa (a bean and corn stew) in the evening and for breakfast. It’s the national dish and we eat it together.”
The Blue Sharks had been Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinalists 2013 and 2023, so they’re no strangers to main competitors, however the enormity of qualifying for a World Cup was evident.
“We had been building for years and when the draw was done there was this determination. We thought ‘if not now, when?'” Lopes stated.
“The government gave everyone the day off work to watch the Eswatini game and to qualify means everything. We’re a very proud football nation, but these 10 tiny islands off the coast of Africa up there with the biggest names, how can you not feel proud?”
Cape Verde have been drawn in Group H to face Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia.
“The little boy in me needs to play Brazil“,” Lopes said. “They are the image of the World Cup. But we might have some work to do to get to play them! We’re pleased with the group we’ve got.”
Jordan is an Arab nation on the east bank of the Jordan River, bordering five countries: Syria, IraqSaudi Arabia, Israel and Palestine‘s West Bank. It has become a hugely popular tourist destination, with visitors flocking to see its UNESCO heritage sites and to swim in the Dead Sea, the lowest point on Earth.
“The most well-known vacationer website is the traditional metropolis and archaeological website of Petra,” Jordan fan Zaid Al Atiyat told ESPN. “It’s nicknamed the ‘Rose City’ as a consequence of its pinkish sandstone and is likely one of the New 7 Wonders of the World [after a campaign in 2000 to choose Wonders of the World from 200 existing monuments].
“Or, if you want to go to Mars but don’t want to travel quite as far, Wadi Rum is a good second choice. Hollywood films such as Dune, Star Wars, The Martian and Lawrence of Arabia were set there.”
Jordan’s nationwide dish, mansaf, product of lamb cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yogurt and served with rice or bulgur, is a supply of nice delight to the nation’s 11.5 million inhabitants, but it surely was additionally at the center of an on-the-pitch controversy.
“At the 2023 AFC Asian Cup round-of-16 sport between Jordan and Iraq, Jordan ahead, Yazan Al-Naimat celebrated his goal by gathering his teammates into a Bedouin-style circle and everyone gesturing with their hands as if eating mansaf,” Al Atiyat stated. “Once Iraq took the lead in the second half, the goal scorer Aymen Hussein celebrated by sitting cross-legged in a mansaf gesture of his own, before controversially getting a second yellow card by [referee] Alireza Faghani.”
Aymen Hussein has been proven a second yellow for over celebrating! 🍛#AsianCup2023 #HayyaAsia pic.twitter.com/9i90ART2zh
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) January 29, 2024
Jordan acquired the final snort in opposition to Iraq, profitable 3-2, they usually went all the way in which to the ultimate the place they misplaced to hosts Qatar.
The Chivalrous Ones certified for the World Cup again in June 2025 with a 3-0 away victory over Oman that confirmed they’d end second in Asia’s Group B behind South Korea.
“Growing up, I never imagined I’d see Jordan on the global stage,” Al Atiyat stated. “But the 2023 Asian Cup truly allowed us to dream big in ways we had never before.”
Jordan had been drawn in Group J on the World Cup and can come up in opposition to Austria, Algeria and Argentina. While that appears like a tricky check for the debutants, they’ve some proficient gamers able to step up.
“Mousa Al-Tamari and his lightning tempo and dribbling ought to be the title in everybody’s heads after they consider Jordan,” Al Atiyat stated. “He is the first Jordanian to play and score in a top five league, and he has established himself as a key player for Stade Rennais.
“Yazan Al-Arab is our pillar at heart again, he is the primary Jordanian to play in Ok League 1 [or FC Seoul]and he was within the Ok League’s 2025 Team of the Year.”
An autonomous Caribbean island inside the Kingdom of the Netherlands recognized for its beautiful seashores and diving, Curaçao may also now declare a bit of soccer historical past. With a inhabitants of simply 156,000, Curaçao grew to become the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup, benefiting from the absence in qualification of three of CONCACAF’s conventional giants.
Curaçao’s two predominant sports activities are baseball and soccer. Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Andrew Jones hails from Curaçao, however on the soccer discipline, successes till now have been tough to come back by.
“As soon as we knew the tournament would be held in the USA, Mexico and Canada, we knew we could make it,” Brenton Balentien, also referred to as Captain Blue Face, a former Curaçao youth worldwide and head of the nation’s supporters’ group, instructed ESPN.
But the qualification course of wasn’t with out its stresses. Curaçao needed to journey to Jamaica on the ultimate day needing to attract to e-book their place.
“When we beat Jamaica at home, I knew it was our year but then I thought I was going to die during the away fixture,” Balentien stated. “My heart stopped for a couple of seconds when they were awarded a penalty at the end, but VAR disallowed it. That feeling stays with you though!”
The majority of Curaçao’s gamers had been born within the Netherlands they usually had been led in qualification by legendary Dutch coach Dick Advocaat. Advocaat, who’s 78 years previous, would have turn out to be the oldest coach ever to handle at a World Cup, however he needed to step down from the position final month for household causes. However, along with robust hyperlinks to the Netherlands, there are lots of different influences on Curaçaoan tradition.
“Curacao is a really various island, quite a lot of completely different cultures grew to become one,” Balentien stated. “We speak five or six languages: Dutch, English, Spanish, Papiamento, Portuguese, French.
“Normally through the World Cup, lots of people help the Netherlands however for these born and raised on the island it’s compulsory to help Brazil. They have been by far probably the most backed crew because the days of Pelé.”
Curaçao could have their work reduce out in Group E after they face Germany, Ecuador and Ivory Coastbut whatever happens it will be a special time to be on the island.
“There is at all times vitality, at all times a celebration, vitality overflows significantly with regards to sport,” Balentien said. “We know the way to eat and drink properly.
“Our specialty is Kuminda di Tera, or earth food. We eat goat and iguana, okra soup, those are favorites. To drink we have blue Curaçao (a vibrant orange flavored liquor) — the original and best in the world, which is produced in a local distillery Landhuis Chobolobo.
“It might be a celebration whether or not we win, lose or draw. We’ll simply be celebrating the actual fact we will play on such a giant stage.”
The first Central Asian nation to qualify for a World Cup, Uzbekistan lastly exorcised the ghosts of previous near-misses to make it to soccer’s greatest occasion.
Geographically, the previous Soviet republic of round 38 million inhabitants has an uncommon declare to fame that it shares with the tiny European principality of Liechtenstein. “Uzbekistan is one of the two doubly landlocked countries in the world [meaning there are two other countries between it and a coastline in any direction],” Uzbekistan supporter Jaloliddin Makhmudov instructed ESPN.
“Our country once used to be the center for the Great Silk Road [a vast network of sea and land trading routes linking China to the Roman Empire, India and Africa]”
When it involves delicacies, Uzbekistan additionally has some spectacular feats to boast about.
“Our traditional food is known as plov [a hearty one-pot rice dish] and it’s served on every occasion, whether it’s a wedding party or a funeral,” Makhmudov stated. “We even set a Guinness World Record when 7,360kg [16,226 lb] of Plov was prepared in Tashkent, the capital city.”
Uzbekistan had been unbeaten all through the second qualifying spherical and secured qualification with a sport to spare after a goalless draw with the UAE. As properly as euphoria, there was a way of reduction after Uzbekistan’s historical past of heroic failures.
The White Wolves misplaced 9-8 on penalties to Jordan in a 2014 World Cup qualification playoff and had been controversially knocked out of the 2006 version on away by objectives Bahrain when the primary leg was replayed as a consequence of a refereeing error.
“The whole of Uzbekistan has been waiting for the World Cup for 34 years,” Makhmudov stated. “We would always fail in the last round, and that would really hurt the entire nation.
“Football is undoubtedly probably the most liked sport in Uzbekistan although we’re among the finest at boxing. So, the World Cup is a really huge event. We at all times felt able to getting there and our gamers have began shining in prime 5 leagues whereas our nationwide league has improved enormously.”
Uzbekistan could have Fabio Cannavaro, Italy‘s World Cup-winning captain and a Ballon d’Or winner in 2006, on the helm. Manchester City‘s Abdukodir Khusanov might be their most well-known face on the pitch, however there are different thrilling gamers able to shine.
“Oston Urunov he might steal the headlines along with his excellent dribbling and capturing expertise,” Makhmudov said. “And Abbos Fayzullaev is one other rising star who was named the 2023 AFC Youth Player of the Year on the AFC Annual Awards in 2024. Prepare to be stunned!”
