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Resilient Haiti deserved World Cup qualification says coach

football19 November 2025 12:45| © Reuters
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Squad unity and resilience were the overriding factors behind Haiti's unlikely qualification for the World Cup, coach Sebastien Migne said after a 2-0 triumph over Nicaragua secured the strife-torn Caribbean nation a place at the 2026 finals.

Haiti overcame considerable odds to qualify for their second World Cup appearance, after a disastrous debut in 1974, topping their qualifying group.

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That was despite the team being forced to play all their matches away from the country where armed gangs have taken control of almost all of the capital, Port-au-Prince, amid a conflict that has forced some 1.3 million people from their homes and fuelled famine-level hunger.

"It's fantastic that after 52 years' absence Haiti has qualified for the biggest footballing stage," Migne told a press conference on Tuesday in Curacao, where they hosted their last fixture.

They had a few hundred supporters watching them qualify and Migne addressed a single reporter afterwards in an empty press conference room in stark contrast to the packed auditoriums where coaches from top teams field the media's questions.

"I'm happy to make everybody proud and for my players because they deserve it. I sometimes pushed the older players to the limits, but it wasn't for nothing," Migne said.

"We had a road map laid out from the beginning. We knew where we were going but we also knew it would be a steep road. But we didn't give it up, we did it all together."

Haiti had been trailing in the standings after Honduras beat them 3-0 in October but bounced back to ensure first place in Group C with wins over Costa Rica and Nicaragua in their final two fixtures over the past six days.

"We never panicked. I know how to do it because I qualified for the previous World Cup with another country," the manager added.

Migne was the assistant coach of Cameroon at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

"It's about keeping calm, working collectively, and that's what we did. And on top of that, we had some quality. So once we were connected to one another, I had no problems, and then it was crazy, high-level resilience."

COACH HOPES TO TRAVEL TO SEE LOCAL PLAYERS

The key to qualification was unity, he added. "Unity, unity, and more unity. We also refreshed the team by introducing a couple of new faces, but we are not a perfect team. However, the more matches we play, the better this team will be. We are going to grow with experience."

 

 

The levels of danger in Haiti are such that Migne has not been there since being appointed 18 months ago, but he hopes to travel there soon.

"Certainly before we next get together in March. I want to see what is being done locally and how they play. We will have a squad of 26 for the World Cup, and the message I'm sending to them is it is up to them to show me what they can do," he said.

Haiti's squad for the World Cup qualifiers has been exclusively drawn from players based at foreign clubs.

Their previous World Cup experience in West Germany in 1974 ended with them losing all three first-round matches, conceding 14 goals but famously taking the lead against Italy in their opening game before being beaten.

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