Curaçao

Curaçao, the small Dutch Caribbean island nation nicknamed Pantera Negra, made history by qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup as the smallest country by population and area ever to reach the tournament. The team competes in CONCACAF and won the Caribbean Cup in 2017.

Football on the island of Curaçao predates independence, with organised structures going back to 1921 under the Netherlands Antilles federation. When the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved in 2010, Curaçao established its own football association — the Federashon Futbòl Kòrsou — and played its inaugural international as an independent nation in August 2011, losing 1–0 to the Dominican Republic. The team draws heavily on players of Dutch-Caribbean heritage competing in European leagues, giving the programme a diaspora character typical of small island football nations.

Curaçao's most prominent achievement before 2026 was winning the CONCACAF Caribbean Cup in 2017, confirming their status as the strongest side in the sub-region. Continued success in CONCACAF qualifying cycles followed, culminating in the team's historic qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup — the first time a nation of such limited population and geographic size had reached the tournament. Leandro Bacuna, the most-capped player in the programme's history, captains the side.