With the 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States, less than a year away, CONCACAF’s groups for the final stage of qualification were unveiled.
Due to the draw, a nation from the Caribbean will qualify for the World Cup for the first time since Trinidad and Tobago in 2006. Below are all four teams in Group B and their form heading into the final qualification stage
Jamaica
Jamaica enters the final stage of qualifying as the 63rd-best nation according to the FIFA World Rankings. This places them above Ghana and Albania.
This also places “The Reggae Boyz” as the sixth-best nation in CONCACAF, and third that remained in qualification due to the three hosts qualifying automatically.
Jamaica has only appeared in the World Cup once before. This appearance came in the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, where they placed third in a group containing Croatia, Argentina and Japan, the latter of which they beat.
Last year, “The Reggae Boyz” qualified for the 2024 Copa America. They were grouped with Ecuador, Venezuela and Mexico, albeit finishing bottom of the group, pointless.
Since then, their manager at the time Heimir Hallgrímsson, who is the current Republic of Ireland manager, who knocked England out of UEFA Euro 2016 with Iceland, resigned. This was due to their performance in the tournament.
He was replaced by their current manager Steve McClaren, who formerly managed England, Newcastle United, Wolfsburg and a host of other clubs across Europe.
Since his appointment, Jamaica have reached the quarter-finals of the CONCACAF Nations League. This was achieved by winning their Group, which also consisted of similarly ranked Honduras.
This year, “The Reggae Boyz” competed in Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium in a friendly competition titled the ‘Unity Cup’, where they beat Trinidad and Tobago to reach the final where they lost on penalties to Nigeria.
Jamaica’s Gold Cup campaign kicks off on Tuesday. They are paired alongside Guatemala, Guadeloupe and Panama.
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago have only qualified for the FIFA World Cup once before. This came back in 2006 under the management of Leo Beenhakker.
The Soca Warriors are ranked 100th in the world, with their highest position being 25th in 2001.
They are currently managed by Dwight Yorke, the former Manchester United, Aston Villa and Sunderland forward.
Yorke represented Trinidad and Tobago in 74 matches as a player between 1989 and 2009, scoring 19 goals. He was also part of the squad that reached the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup, which was won by Canada.
Last year, the Soca Warriors missed out on the chance to qualify for Copa America 2024, losing 2-0 to Canada at Toyota Stadium.
Despite how close to qualification they were, they finished 4th in a disappointing campaign in the Nations League, winning one of their four matches.
However, in World Cup Qualification, Yorke’s side qualified for the next round over Grenada on goal difference, finishing on seven points out of a possible 12.
Going into the Gold Cup, Trinidad and Tobago have only won two out of their last eleven matches.
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Curacao
Curacao enters qualifying in fine form. Despite being ranked 154th in the world in 2016, La Familia Azul are now 90th and climbing.
They are managed by Dick Advocaat, who will be familiar to many, with his spells at Sunderland, Rangers, PSV and many more sides.
Advocaat has also managed a plethora of national teams, such as his home nation of the Netherlands on three occasions, the UAE, Russia, South Korea, Belgium, Serbia and Iraq.
Due to historical ties between Curacao and the Netherlands, with Curacao a constituent country within the Netherlands, many Dutch-born players with Curaçaoan heritage choose to represent the small Caribbean island.
This has led to players such as Vurnon Anita, Cuco Martina, and Darryl Lachman, who were born in the Netherlands, representing Curacao at an international level.
So far in qualifying, they topped their qualifying group, winning all of their matches.
They enter the Gold Cup, after topping Pot B of Group 2 in the Nations League earlier this time last year.
Bermuda
This is the first time that Bermuda has ever qualified for the final stage of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifiers.
The small archipelago, consisting of 181 islands is home to around 65,000 civilians, with its largest city consisting of under 2,000 people.
Bermuda, who are nicknamed the Gombey Warriors, sit 161st in the FIFA World Rankings. This places them just below Cuba and Saint Lucia.
Despite this, in 1992, the archipelago was ranked 58th best in the world. Since 1995, Bermuda has never been in the top 100 of FIFA’s rankings.
They are managed by Michael Findlay, who was born in Saint Boniface, Winnipeg, Canada in 1963. Findlay worked in the development cycle of the Canadian national team from 2007 as the assistant to Canada’s U17 national side until 2017, where he was interim manager for a year.
In 2021, he was appointed manager of Grenada but only lasted a year.
Since his appointment in August 2023, the Gombey Warriors have steadily improved. Bermuda finished runners-up Pot B Group 4, with 12 points out of six matches.
Findlay’s side qualified for the final round of CONCACAF Qualifiers after finishing second in their group, with two wins, one draw and one loss.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Agencia-MexSport
Recording Date: 21.03.2024