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Guinness World Records has officially recognised Curacao as the smallest country by population to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, marking a historic milestone for the island nation.
The recognition highlights Curacao's remarkable football achievement, as the island nation with a population of just 1,56,115 has secured its place on the world's biggest football stage. "We were delighted to present Gilbert Martina, the President of the Curacao Football Federation, the certificate for the smallest country by population to qualify for the FIFA World Cup - 156,115 people," Guinness World Records wrote in a post on X. https://x.com/GWR/status/2066814792023597149?s=20 Meanwhile, Curacao manager Dick Advocaat encouraged his side, saying that "they need to turn this into a beautiful tournament", adding that they could surprise in their next two group stage matches after they lost their FIFA World Cup opener against Germany. Curacao managed to send the German camp into distress for a brief period with a 21st-minute equaliser by Livano Comenencia, but the four-time champions came back in the second half, curb-stomping Curacao in a 7-1 victory with standout contributions from Kai Havertz and Deniz Undav. Despite the defeat, Advocaat has encouraged his players to "not be downcast", noting that the loss is "not a disgrace". Following the match, Advocaat was quoted as saying by Reuters, "We need to turn this into a beautiful tournament. We can have a surprise in the second and third matches. In the end, we will be glad we were part of the biggest football tournament in the world." "We had expected to do more against Germany, but we could not. They were very, very strong, and we conceded some easy goals," he said."Players know if they lose, they should not be downcast. This is not a disgrace," he added. The manager was also appreciative of the support from the fans who travelled to the US, even when Germany kept on piling on goals. He also spoke on stepping back in the team dugout during the playing of the national anthem, saying that the moment was too emotional for him. "This is related to the joy of the people in Curacao. This is when the emotions come to the surface. The joy of the people is fantastic," he signed off. Curacao made history by scoring a goal on their World Cup debut against four-time champions Germany. (ANI)
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