A Tribute to Haiti – The Magic Island!
Despite several problems in the Island, in 1974, the Haitian squad ranked among Latin America’s finest teams, along with Brazil and Argentina, as well as Uruguay and Chile. In that time, the world’s first black republic qualified for the X World Cup in Munich (West Germany). The country’s qualification for the 1974 World Cup was one of the surprises in the Western Hemisphere. Certainly, Haiti did not win the tournament, but it won many hearts in Germany. During the global event, its men’s soccer team finished 15th, ahead of Zaire (today the Democratic Republic of the Congo). Haiti’s first FIFA World Cup Squad is still very popular with local fans. Soccer is wildly popular in the Island.
Country Profile: Haiti
Haiti shares the Island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic (Caribbean). The capital city is Port-au-Prince. By the early 1800s Haiti became the first black republic on Earth-a black government took over in the Island. Over the next 200 years, the nation had a host of dictatorships and anti-democratic governments. But it is democratic nation since the mid-2000s. An earthquake struck Port-au-Prince in January 2010; killed more than 200,000 people and the Haitian capital was left in ruins.Because of this, Haiti became the world’s poorest nation.
The Gold Age
After Haiti failed to qualify for the 1970 FIFA World Cup, the men’s team persisted and continued to train for the next FIFA World Cup. Before the end of 1973 the CONCACAF Tournament -the region’s most important soccer event– was held in Haiti’s capital of Port-au-Prince. During that pre-World Cup tournament, the host country’s team placed first, outpacing Mexico, one of the five best squads at the Games of the XX Olympiad in West Germany in 1972, and Trinidad Tobago. The Haitian squad was the only Caribbean team to have eliminated Mexico. As a result, Haiti qualified for World Cup 1974. It had never won an international event of this standing in front. Haitians were happy with the team's success. Four years ago, El Salvador, Haiti was 1-0 in the final of the CONCACAF championship in Kingston, Jamaica defeated.
Competing in his first World Cup in 1974, the island was one of the 15 best teams in the world. His poor performance in World Cup despite winning the admiration of Haiti and the respect of his competitors. Also during this event,Haiti’s athlete Emmanuel Sanon -a Caribbean soccer icon– was one of the most popular soccer players from Latin America. His soccer wonders were well-known by experts in the 1970s.
According to Almanaque Deportivo 1976 (Sports Almanac 1976), the under-16 national football team won the World Championship in the United Mexican States in September 1975, at the expense of Sweden and Australia.
By 1977 the men’s soccer team was runner-up in the CONCACAF Tournament in North America, behind Mexico (host country). In the years that followed, in 1981, Haiti finished sixth in Honduras, Central America. Twenty-six years later, the under-17 national football squad qualified for the global tournament in South Korea. At the 2007 Under-17 World Cup, the team of Haiti tied with France 1-1.
Some outstanding footballers have come from the Island: Emmanuel Sanon, Wilner Nazaire, Roger Saint-Vil, and Joseph Gaetjens,for example. By 1950 Mr Gaetjens competed in the IV World Cup under the American flag. He is best known as the player who scored the famous goal that defeated England 1-0 in 1950. He left Haiti for the States in the late 1940s, and then became a U.S. citizen. Meanwhile, Josmer “Jozy” Altidore, whose parents are from Haiti,is one of the most popular players in the United States of America.
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