Two Underdogs Enter, One Underdog Leaves
HAITI VS SCOTLAND
On June 13th, in one of the tournament’s opening matches, the fate of two of the World Cup’s most compelling underdogs will be decided. To the winner: a celebration decades in the making and a legitimate shot at the Round of 32. To the loser: a brutal run against Brazil and Morocco with zero margin for error.
Oh, and as one of Group C’s most affordable tickets, Haiti vs Scotland is shaping up to be a neutral observer’s dream.
The Scots spent the past 28 years attempting to wash the taste of their winless 1998 performance from their mouths, but only ended up swallowing more bitter pills. Having been denied by Ukraine during the 2022 playoffs and Lithuania in 2018, one can understand the delirium that erupted when the Tartan Army punched their ticket with a 4-2 upset of Denmark in November.
But if Scotland’s wait has been a
drought, Haiti’s has been a desert.
Having wandered the World Cup wilderness
for over half a century, Les Grenadiers are back in action for the first time
since 1974. Yet the struggles of the past pale in comparison to the challenges
of the present. Forced into exile due to instability in Port-au-Prince, this
squad managed to qualify despite not registering a single minute of qualifying
play on home soil. And without the ability to attend local league matches, head
coach Sébastien Migné became a “Zoom manager”, tapping into the diaspora to assemble
a squad as bonded by shared adversity as shared geography.
As for the soccer itself, both teams favor a direct, vertical style of play, which means the action on the pitch should live up to the storylines. Crosses to Napoli’s box-crashing Ballon d’Or nominee Scott McTominay will segue to bombs in the direction of 6’4” Frantzdy “The Tank” Pierrot on the other. But after 80-plus years of combined wait time, this match is all about the fans.
With two matches at Gillette less than a week apart, Boston may well turn into Edinburgh West in mid-June, and the Tartan Army’s passion and positivity have made them a darling of the international soccer scene. And with the third-largest Haitian population in the US residing in nearby Mattapan and Dorchester, the island’s legendary “rara” energy won’t need to be imported by plane.
Put it all together and you have the sleeper hit of Group C, with the fate of two hopeful nations hanging in the balance.
