Kansas City, June 20 -- Curacao coach Dick Advocaat believes his team's presence at the FIFA World Cup 2026 is already a victory in itself, as the Caribbean nation continues to celebrate a remarkable journey from humble beginnings to football's biggest stage.

Making their World Cup debut, Curacao endured a difficult start to their Group E campaign with a 7-1 defeat to Germany. However, the result has done little to dampen the sense of pride surrounding the smallest nation ever to qualify for the tournament, with a population of approximately 156,000.

Ahead of Saturday's clash against Ecuador, Advocaat reflected on how far the team has come since his appointment in January 2024.

"Obviously, 7-1 is a major result, but we were playing a m...