The World Cup’s greatest underdog story begins on Sunday in Houston, when four-time winners Germany take on the smallest nation to ever qualify for the competition, Curacao.Curacao are the poster child of the concept of a 48-team World Cup, ushering in space for teams that otherwise enjoy the planet’s most popular sporting event from the sidelines rather than as a participant. Their journey to their first World Cup is not only about luck, though. In a cycle where North American mainstays like Haiti, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago underperformed, Curacao rose to the challenge. Gervane Kastaneer, a journeyman striker who was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands who has played for clubs in seven countries, including his current spot at Malaysia’s Terengganu FC, notched five goals in a historic campaign. They did all this with Dick Advocaat, the former Netherlands national team coach, at the helm, overachieving despite subpar conditions on the way and becoming as intriguing a World Cup newcomer as it gets.Their success was miraculous, though the stretch in between qualification and their World Cup opener on Sunday was not straightforward. Advocaat left the job in February over a personal issue and seemed unlikely to join the team at the tournament, only to resume the job in May. The inconsistency is only a small layer in the overarching question facing Curacao, who have overcome just about every odd to get here – how exactly are they going to do at the World Cup?
The feeling amongst the group – and the nation, quite frankly – is that nothing is out of the question after already doing something that was so improbable, it verged on being impossible.
“I feel honored to be a member of the squad,” Jurgen Locadia stated in CBS Sports’ deep dive of Curacao’s remarkable journey. “I’m happy and grateful to represent Curacao. So I think the way we as a team show appreciation to the locals, I believe we are very humble, this team. We have conversations with the locals after the game, before the game, and when we have practice after practice, we take time for the locals. I think if we give them the respect, you’re gonna receive the respect back.”
How to watch Germany vs. Curacao
Date: Sunday, June 14 | Time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: NRG Stadium — Houston, Texas
TV: FOX (Eng), Telemundo (Spa) | Live stream: Fubo (Try for free)
Odds: Germany -2000; Draw +1900; Curacao +3500
Germany vs. Curacao predicted starting lineups
Germany: Manuel Neuer, Joshua Kimmich, Jonathan Tah, Nico Schlotterbeck, Nathaniel Brown, Felix Nmecha, Aleksandar Pavlovic, Leroy Sane, Jamal Musiala, Florian Wirtz, Kai Havertz
Curacao: Eloy Room, Shurandy Sambo, Jurien Gaari, Armando Obispo, Sherel Floranus, Leandro Bacuna, Livano Comenencia, Juninho Bacuna, Tahith Chong, Jurgen Locadia, Jeremy Antonisse
Germany vs. Curacao pick, prediction
There are real doubts about how far this Germany team can go, but they will likely do just fine against Curacao, Julian Nagelsmann’s side boasting more than enough talent to pick up a lopsided win to start their World Cup journey. Maybe this is just hopeful optimism, but maybe, just maybe, Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer might offer up an opening for Curacao to score their first-ever World Cup goal – which would still be the most notable thing that happened in Houston on Sunday, no matter how hefty Germany’s win might be. Pick: Germany 4, Curacao 1
