Curaçao forward Jearl Margaritha believes Dick Advocaat will be missed by the team after he resigned as head coach due to personal issues. (0:45)
Every soccer fan dreams of seeing their nation in a World Cup, but for many of FIFA's 211 member associations, that ambition remains just that: a dream.
However, the expansion of soccer's showpiece event to 48 teams for the 2026 tournament, which is co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States, has left the door ajar to nations who previously would have fallen short, while other countries have hit their stride at just the right time with golden generations driving them to qualification for their maiden finals.
The record for World Cup debutants (aside from the first tournament in 1930) is six. Angola, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago and Ukraine all made their bows at the 2006 competition.
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While as many as nine potential newcomers were in the mix for 2026 heading into the March playoffs, only four of those teams will be on the ground when the competition kicks off on June 11.
Cape Verde, Curaçao, Jordan and Uzbekistan have punched their tickets, but what do we know about these nations, both on and off the pitch? For most fans around the world who'll be watching this summer, it's not a whole lot.
We spoke to an expert from each debutant country to get better acquainted with 2026's World Cup underdogs.
A volcanic archipelago of 10 islands off Africa's West Coast, Cape Verde secured their spot by winning Group D in Africa, beating Cameroon to top spot.
With a population of just 525,000, Cape Verde is the third-smallest nation by population to qualify for a World Cup, after Iceland in 2018 and fellow 2026 debutants Curaçao. The decisive win came on Oct.13 when Cape Verde overcame Eswatini 3-0 on home soil, sparking wild celebrations in 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 told 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 food, have been a big part of bonding the Cape Verde team who come together from all over the world for their international fixtures.
"Music is a huge part of the dressing-room atmosphere," Lopes said. "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 were Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinalists 2013 and 2023, so they are no strangers to major competition, but 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 said.
"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 wants to play Brazil," Lopes said. "They are the symbol of the World Cup. But we'd have some work to do to get to play them! We're happy with the group we have."
Jordan is an Arab nation on the east bank of the Jordan River, bordering five countries: Syria, Iraq, Saudi 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 famous tourist site is the ancient city and archaeological site of Petra," Jordan fan Zaid Al Atiyat told ESPN. "It's nicknamed the 'Rose City' due to its pinkish sandstone and is 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 national dish, mansaf, made of lamb cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yogurt and served with rice or bulgur, is a source of great pride to the country's 11.5 million inhabitants, but it was also at the center of an on-the-pitch controversy.
"At the 2023 AFC Asian Cup round-of-16 game between Jordan and Iraq, Jordan forward, 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 said. "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 shown a second yellow for over celebrating! 🍛#AsianCup2023 #HayyaAsia pic.twitter.com/9i90ART2zh
Jordan got the last laugh against Iraq, winning 3-2, and they went all the way to the final where they lost to hosts Qatar.
The Chivalrous Ones qualified for the World Cup back in June 2025 with a 3-0 away victory over Oman that confirmed they would finish second in Asia's Group B behind South Korea.
"Growing up, I never imagined I'd see Jordan on the global stage," Al Atiyat said. "But the 2023 Asian Cup truly allowed us to dream big in ways we had never before."
Jordan were drawn in Group J at the World Cup and will come up against Austria, Algeria and Argentina. While that looks like a tough test for the debutants, they have some talented players ready to step up.
"Mousa Al-Tamari and his lightning pace and dribbling should be the name in everyone's heads when they think of Jordan," Al Atiyat said. "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 center back, he's the first Jordanian to play in K League 1 [or FC Seoul], and he was in the K League's 2025 Team of the Year."
View this post on InstagramAn autonomous Caribbean island within the Kingdom of the Netherlands known for its stunning beaches and diving, Curaçao can also now claim a piece of soccer history. With a population of just 156,000, Curaçao became the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup, taking advantage of the absence in qualification of three of CONCACAF's traditional giants.
Curaçao's two main sports are baseball and soccer. Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Andrew Jones hails from Curaçao, but on the soccer field, successes until now have been harder to come 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 known as Captain Blue Face, a former Curaçao youth international and head of the nation's supporters' group, told ESPN.
But the qualification process wasn't without its stresses. Curaçao had to travel to Jamaica on the final day needing a draw to 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 said. "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 players were born in the Netherlands and they were led in qualification by legendary Dutch coach Dick Advocaat. Advocaat, who is 78 years old, would have become the oldest coach ever to manage at a World Cup, but he had to step down from the role last month for family reasons. However, in addition to strong links to the Netherlands, there are many other influences on Curaçaoan culture.
"Curacao is a very diverse island, a lot of different cultures became one," Balentien said. "We speak five or six languages: Dutch, English, Spanish, Papiamento, Portuguese, French.
"Normally during the World Cup, a lot of people support the Netherlands but for those born and raised on the island it is obligatory to support Brazil. They have been by far the most backed team since the days of Pelé."
Curaçao will have their work cut out in Group E when they face Germany, Ecuador and Ivory Coast, but whatever happens it will be a special time to be on the island.
"There always energy, always a party, energy overflows particularly when it comes to sport," Balentien said. "We know how to eat and drink well.
"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 will be a party whether we win, lose or draw. We'll just be celebrating the fact we can play on such a big stage."
View this post on InstagramThe first Central Asian nation to qualify for a World Cup, Uzbekistan finally exorcised the ghosts of past near-misses to make it to soccer's biggest event.
Geographically, the former Soviet republic of around 38 million inhabitants has an unusual claim 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 told 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 comes to cuisine, Uzbekistan also has some impressive 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 said. "We even set a Guinness World Record when 7,360kg [16,226 lb] of Plov was prepared in Tashkent, the capital city."
Uzbekistan were unbeaten throughout the second qualifying round and secured qualification with a game to spare after a goalless draw with the UAE. As well as euphoria, there was a sense of relief after Uzbekistan's history of heroic failures.
The White Wolves lost 9-8 on penalties to Jordan in a 2014 World Cup qualification playoff and were controversially knocked out of the 2006 edition on away goals by Bahrain when the first leg was replayed due to a refereeing error.
"The whole of Uzbekistan has been waiting for the World Cup for 34 years," Makhmudov said. "We would always fail in the last round, and that would really hurt the entire nation.
"Football is undoubtedly the most loved sport in Uzbekistan even though we are one of the best at boxing. So, the World Cup is a very big occasion. We always felt capable of getting there and our players have started shining in top five leagues while our national league has improved greatly."
Uzbekistan will have Fabio Cannavaro, Italy's World Cup-winning captain and a Ballon d'Or winner in 2006, at the helm. Manchester City's Abdukodir Khusanov will be their most famous face on the pitch, but there are other exciting players ready to shine.
"Oston Urunov could steal the headlines with his outstanding dribbling and shooting skills," Makhmudov said. "And Abbos Fayzullaev is another rising star who was named the 2023 AFC Youth Player of the Year at the AFC Annual Awards in 2024. Prepare to be surprised!"
