Three Lengthy World Cup Droughts Officially Set to Come to An End
Qualifying for next summer’s FIFA World Cup is almost complete, with just the playoffs remaining to round out the six final spots on the plane to North America. Of the 42 teams confirmed so far, the qualified nations couldn’t be more varied.
Record champions Brazil, reigning champions Argentina, and current European Champions Spain have all punched their tickets, and it’s those three that online betting sites make the teams to beat. One can bet on sports at Bovada, and the American bookie has all three of them listed among the favourites, with the Spaniards securing top billing as the 4/1 favourites to leave MetLife Stadium next July with the famous gold trophy. If you’re looking to bet on sports, they’re definitely a team to keep an eye on.
But at the opposite end of the scale, Uzbekistan, Jordan, Cape Verde, and tiny Curacao will all appear on the grandest stage for the first time, with the latter of that quartet the smallest nation to ever qualify. While those four will be making a maiden appearance, several other teams have ended lengthy barren spells to get back onto this stage. Let’s take a look at three of them.
Haiti
Haiti’s first and last successful World Cup qualification came all the way back in 1974, and their maiden foray ended in disaster, losing all three group stage games and conceding 14 goals in the process. Over half a century later, they are back on the grandest stage, and their story couldn’t be more inspiring.
Exiled from playing home games in their own country, the Haitians benefited from all three of the CONCACAF region's heavyweights automatically qualifying for next summer as co-hosts, namely the United States, Mexico, and Canada. With the big boys gone, the road to the World Cup opened up, but they found themselves as the underdogs of Group C alongside Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, with the latter having qualified for five of the last six tournaments.
Just one win in their opening four games seemingly spelled trouble, but the Grenadiers refused to fold. They ended their qualifying campaign with back-to-back victories against Costa Rica and Nicaragua, with both games being played in Curacao. The wins were enough to secure top spot in the group, two points clear of Honduras, whose draw against Costa Rica on the final day opened the door for the Haitian miracle.
Scotland
Not since 1998 have the Tartan Army ventured onto the global stage. Back at France ‘98, they endured a dismal time of it, and for the two decades that followed, it was nothing but misery. However, under Steve Clarke, Scotland has been reborn.
The Scots qualified for the last two UEFA European Championships, and all that remained was for them to finally grace the FIFA World Cup stage. The increase in teams from 32 to 48 meant that there would never be a better chance. Even so, they headed into the final two games knowing that they would need plenty of assistance.
In their penultimate game, they found themselves 3-0 down to an already eliminated Greece, only to rally back to 3-2, courtesy of goals from Ben Gannon-Doak and Ryan Christie. Scott McTominay had a golden opportunity to make it 3-3 in the dying embers, only to smash his volley straight at the Greek goalkeeper. Luckily for them, lowly Belarus were doing them an almighty favour in Copenhagen, somehow stealing a 2-2 draw against Denmark and keeping Scottish hopes alive.
The Tartan Army welcomed the Danes to Hampden Park for the final game, knowing that victory would send them to the World Cup. What unfolded was the stuff of dreams.
McTominay made up for his miss in Greece with a spectacular overhead kick after just three minutes, putting Scotland in the box seat. Denmark would twice rally, levelling thanks to a Rasmus Hojlund penalty and then equalising again late on as Patrick Dorgu cancelled out Lawrence Shankland’s earlier strike.
With the game poised at 2-2 deep into the dying embers, the Danish visitors looked to hold on, especially after defender Rasmus Kristensen was sent off. The tie looked like it would finish all square and break Scottish hearts, but there was more drama around the corner. Celtic defender Kieran Tierney sparked pandemonium when he curled one home from the edge of the area to give Scotland a 3-2 lead. Then, with seconds remaining, Kenny McLean scored an absolute stunner from the halfway line, sealing a 4-2 victory and ending a 28-year wait to return to the World Cup.
Norway
Like Scotland, Norway hadn’t featured at the World Cup since 1998. Also like the Scots, it had been nothing but pain in the years since. However, the emergence of a new golden generation led by a certain Erling Haaland reignited the hopes of the Nordic nation.
The Lions were drawn alongside four-time world champions Italy, but it was clear that the Azzurri were no match for Haaland and co. Norway thumped the Italians 3-0 in their first qualifying game, and that set the tone for what was to come. They won every single one of their seven qualifying games ahead of the return fixture against Italy, scoring a whopping 34 goals in the process.
As a result, Italy needed to beat Norway 9-0 in Milan in order to qualify for the World Cup at the Norwegians’ expense. That was never going to happen, but at least an Azzurri victory would salvage some pride... Norway wasn’t about to let that happen either. A stunning second half saw the Lions net four times, with Haaland bagging two of them, to secure a spectacular 4-1 win and hand Italy their heaviest home defeat in 70 years.