First Touch ’26 - Haiti

No team at this World Cup carries a heavier off-field burden, or a purer sense of joy, than Haiti. In this World Cup Capsule, David Gass tells the story of the Grenadiers’ impossible run from a country in deep political and humanitarian crisis, where the national team hasn’t played a home game since 2021 and even the coach has never set foot in Haiti during qualifying.

We go back to 1974 and Emmanuel Sanon’s iconic goal that ended Dino Zoff’s record shutout streak, then fast-forward through earthquake-era heartbreak, Gold Cup parties, and a qualifying campaign where every “home” game was on neutral soil. With insight from defender Duke LaCroix, we relive the final matchday miracle that saw Haiti top their group, huddled around a phone waiting on other results, and meet the new heroes: Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, Frantzdy Pierrot, and rising wingers Rúben Providence and Don Deedson Louicius. It’s a story of exile, diaspora, and a national team that keeps finding ways to dance in the dark.