Haiti at the World Cup 2026: 52 Years in the Making

Fifty-two years. That is how long Haiti waited to walk back onto football's biggest stage. The last time Les Grenadiers played at a World Cup was West Germany 1974, when Emmanuel Sanon famously beat Italy's Dino Zoff to end the legendary keeper's record run of more than 1,100 minutes without conceding. Now, for the first time since then, Haiti are back — the only Caribbean nation ever to reach two World Cups — and they will line up at Canada, Mexico and the USA 2026.

The qualification story is extraordinary on its own. Because of the ongoing security crisis at home, Haiti could not host a single qualifier on Haitian soil, playing their entire "home" campaign at neutral venues, largely in Curaçao. They still topped their final-round group, sealing their place with a 2-0 win over Nicaragua on the decisive last matchday — a result confirmed by FIFA. Doing that under those conditions makes this one of the most stirring qualification runs of the entire cycle.

French coach Sébastien Migné, in charge since June 2024, has built his squad almost entirely from the diaspora — players forged in Europe, North and South America. The headline names are midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde of Wolverhampton Wanderers and forward Wilson Isidor, fresh off a strong season at Sunderland, alongside experienced striker Duckens Nazon and goalkeeper Johny Placide. It is a young group, with an average age around 24, blending real top-flight pedigree with first-time World Cup nerves. You can see the full picture on the Haiti team page.

The draw was unkind. In Group C Haiti face Brazil, Morocco and Scotland. They open against Scotland in Foxborough on June 13, then meet five-time champions Brazil in Philadelphia on June 19, before closing against a strong Morocco side — World Cup 2022 semi-finalists — in Atlanta on June 24. In the 48-team format, the top two of each group and the best third-placed teams advance to a round of 32, so a single result against Scotland or Morocco could realistically keep the dream alive deep into the group stage.

Realistically, no one is tipping Haiti to win the group, and the models see them as long shots to advance — but long shots are exactly what makes a World Cup unforgettable, and a team that qualified from exile has already defied the odds once. Want to know how far Migné's men can really go? Run the bracket yourself in our match simulator and explore the full breakdown in our 2026 World Cup predictions.