New Delhi: Germany thrashed Curaçao 7-1 in the opening fixture of Group E in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. While the result did not come as a surprise to the world, the only goal from the island nation created history. Livano Comenencia’s strike at the 21st minute briefly levelled the fixture, but the architect behind this success was in the dugout. He is the Dutch football coach Dick Advocaat.
At 78, he became the oldest manager ever to grace the FIFA World Cup, leading the smallest nation with a population of 1,50,000 and a land area of only 444 square kilometres to qualify for football’s biggest tournament. For Advocaat, who has had a managerial career across Europe, Asia and the Middle East for nearly four decades, guiding Curaçao to the World Cup must be the best chapter in his life.
And this could be summed up from his tears just before the kick-off against Germany. Ahead of the clash, Advocaat said, “We are a small country compared to Germany, but we will make life difficult for them and be a tough team to play.”
Who is Dick Advocaat?
Born on 27 September 1947 in The Hague, Netherlands, Advocaat played as a midfielder for clubs like ADO Den Haag and Bern in Switzerland. He was never one of the top players. Instead, he took his venture in coaching and managing teams, which had started in the 1980s. He has found success with teams like the Netherlands, Rangers, PSV Eindhoven, Zenit Saint Petersburg, South Korea, Russia, Belgium and Serbia.
Nicknamed the “Little General” for his approach to the game, he has won league titles, domestic cups and even the UEFA Cup (now Europa League) with Zenit in 2008.
Advocaat had retired several times. And, he did make a comeback an equal number of times. In 2021, he retired from Feyenoord after a two-year stint at the Dutch club. But football kept pulling him back. And this time, it was Curaçao.
He again left football for family problems. Earlier this year, he stepped away from the national team after his daughter faced health issues. It looked like the very coach who had helped the island nation reach the World Cup would not be a part of that very tournament.
But fate had other things in store for him. Advocaat returned to the dugout ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He was welcomed by players and fans.
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Advocaat’s contribution to Curaçao
In 2024, Advocaat took charge of the Curaçao football team. He convinced several dual-nationality players that Curaçao’s project was worth investing in.
Curaçao relies heavily on the Dutch diaspora, as nearly all of the national team’s regular players are born, raised, or playing professionally in the Netherlands. Curaçao is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and players holding Dutch passports can choose to represent Curaçao if they have parental or grandparental heritage linking them to the island.
Curaçao navigated through the CONCACAF qualifying rounds and secured its first-ever FIFA World Cup berth. Advocaat’s challenge was that the island nation did not have a massive football infrastructure, no big-money league, and players who mostly represent mid-table European clubs.
A goal against Germany at the World Cup announced Curaçao’s arrival at the international level. And the man in the dugout, wiping tears before kick-off, had everything to do with that.