"This is nothing to be ashamed of."
Curacao manager Dick Advocaat of the Netherlands made the remark at a press conference after his side suffered a 1-7 defeat to Germany in their opening Group E match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, held at Houston Stadium in Texas on Monday Korea time.
Curacao, a Caribbean island nation with a population of about 150,000, played its World Cup finals debut that day. Although they conceded the opening goal to Germany, they enjoyed the joy of their first World Cup finals goal when Livano Comenencia equalized in the 21st minute of the first half. But they were ultimately unable to withstand Germany's overwhelming firepower and lost.
Advocaat praised his players' efforts despite the heavy defeat. "The value of the German squad is about 850 million euros (approximately 1.49 trillion won), while our team is at the level of 25 million euros (approximately 43.8 billion won)," he said, encouraging his players. "Losing to an opponent like this is by no means a shameful thing."
At 78 years old, Advocaat set the record as the oldest manager at a World Cup finals in this tournament. Having taken charge of the Curacao national team since January 2024 and led them to their first-ever World Cup finals appearance, this tournament marks his third World Cup as a manager. He led the Netherlands at the 1994 World Cup in the United States and the South Korean national team at the 2006 World Cup in Germany. At that time, South Korea was eliminated in the group stage with one win, one draw and one loss.
"Just reaching the finals is already a great achievement," Advocaat stressed. "Our job is to show our best form." He added, "Regardless of the results of the remaining matches, simply participating in the world's largest football stage is something to be proud of."
Curacao will face Ecuador and Ivory Coast in succession in the remaining group stage matches.
