Known as the Blue Family, the Curacao men’s national team is ready to show the world how to dance in the rain.
Its soccer federation president, Gilbert Martina, recently penned the book, ‘Healthy Minds, Healthy Nation’, about his efforts to be a calming force in the face of coaching upheaval and criticism from both inside and outside of Curacao.
In an exclusive interview, Martina described how an island, roughly the size of Bakersfield, will become the smallest nation to ever play in the FIFA World Cup when it makes its debut against Germany in Houston on Sunday, June 14 at 10 a.m.
What happens next? The way Martina sees it, “everything becomes possible.”
HISTORY OF HARDSHIP
A constituent of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Curacao was originally a Spanish colony-turned-cattle ranch until the Dutch colonized the island and shifted its focus to shipping before becoming a stop along North Atlantic slave trade routes.
The Dutch West India Trading Company founded the capital, Willemstad, in 1634. Now a UNESCO World Heritage site, Willemstad has experienced centuries of civil unrest yet was one of the few reliable Caribbean ports for the Allied operation during World War II despite multiple attacks from German submarines.
Oil, specifically Shell and Exxon refineries, have shaped the economics of the island since, with closures in the 1980s leading to hardships that forced many to emigrate to the Netherlands.
“The rain started a long time ago and we’ve gone through quite some disturbances,” Martina said. “There’s been some heavy, heavy years but I have learned that pain is not suffering but actually a call for us to look at our strength.”
While the country’s government continues to struggle to retain autonomy, Hurricane Tomas in 2010 and the COVID pandemic in 2020 dealt major blows to the island, a recent rating as the No. 1 travel Caribbean travel destination for 2026 has helped it shed a label as the lesser of the ABCs (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao).
“The qualification has given Curacao huge, huge exposure to the world,” Martino said. “And it’s not just about football; it’s about purpose, it’s about identity and it’s about culture.”
Ultimately, a tumultuous past has created a competitive and resilient people.
MARTINA’S MAGIC
The former chief operations officer of the Curacao Medical Center in Willemstad, Martina took the job as the country’s leading soccer official last spring, stepping in during the middle of the long Concacaf qualifying process.
“The first thing I focused on was to bring peace, tranquility and structure to the top,” Martina said. “If you have a top that is not at ease, that will reflect within the organization, and it will reflect on the pitch because the players will know it.”
The organization tens of thousands in debt, Martina accepted the new role with a deep understanding of its responsibilities.
“The federation was in great need of stability, in great need of financials and funding for the national team,” Martina said. “So the question is, ‘Where are we heading?’ And actually, that’s what I focused on because that’s what I’ve been doing behind the scenes since 2003.”
His work with the insurance industry in Holland led to a key sponsorship that helped balance the national team’s budget.
“Whenever you put your gifts, your purpose, that thing you can do and put it to service for the greater interest, that’s when the magic starts happening,” Martina said. “That’s when life becomes effortless and you start co-creating beauty.”
QUALIFICATION QUESTIONS
A member of Concacaf, Curacao’s chances of qualification were undoubtedly buoyed by North America’s hosting of the men’s World Cup for the first time since 1994, and with it the automatic qualifications of the three host nations.
“We are aware that there’s a lot of being at the right place at the right time to make this happen,” Martina said.
With a long-standing professional league dating to the 1920s, the game has long had a presence in Curacao and its most talented youth players are now quickly signed by big clubs in the Netherlands and across Europe.
“The local competition was stopped for almost two-and-a-half years (in 2023 and 2024) and clubs were having disputes with former board members,” Martina said. “I was requested by a large number of the local clubs.”
An independent member of Concacaf since 2011, experienced head coach Dick Advocaat joined Curacao in 2024 and led the Blue Family to unprecedented results over Trinidad & Tobago and Jamaica to earn qualifications before leaving the team in February for family reasons.
Assistant coach Dean Gorre stepped in to oversee a scoreless draw in Jamaica to clinch qualification, and Advocaat has since returned to guide the team in the tournament.
“It’s something special for us to be there,” Advocaat told the BBC. “Playing against players you see on TV, who play in the top leagues. Anyone can surprise. Why not Curacao? That’s what we’ll try to do.”
Advocaat, 78, will become the oldest coach in the history of the tournament.
FIRST WORLD CUP
There won’t be many city services available in Willemstad on Sunday while Curacao takes on Germany’s Die Mannshaft.
“The whole island will be paralyzed, totally paralyzed,” Martina said. “The whole island, because Netherlands and Germany, are rivals for life.”
Martina will be at each of the three Group E matches for Curacao, following the team to Kansas City for its match against Ecuador on June 21 and to Philadelphia to face Ivory Coast on June 25.
“All the fans who sympathize with Curacao being the underdog at the World Cup will be behind the team,” Martina said. “Our ambition is to get to the (Round of 32).”
Even in an expanded 48-team tournament, the odds are stacked against them.
“Information like that is knowing that water is H20, but wisdom is being able to harness the rain,” Martina said. “The storm is coming. We’re going to dance and we’re going to show the world who we truly are.”