WILLEMSTAD (DA) — Curaçao’s debut at the FIFA World Cup 2026 has been highlighted by FIFA’s Technical Study Group as part of a broader sign that the expanded 48-team tournament has produced a more competitive global field.
The Technical Study Group (TSG) said after the group stage that emerging football nations, including Curaçao and Cabo Verde, have shown that top teams can no longer expect easy matches at the World Cup.
Curaçao lost 7-1 to Germany in its opening match, one of the more lopsided results of the group stage, but FIFA Senior Football Expert Pascal Zuberbühler said the final score did not tell the full story. He noted that the match stayed 1-1 for a significant stretch, calling that level of resistance from a smaller football nation “already a big win” at the World Cup.
“It shows that global football is growing massively,” Zuberbühler said.
Curaçao also earned its first World Cup point with a draw against Ecuador, a result former Ghana coach Otto Addo specifically praised during the TSG briefing. Addo said debuting teams had shown they belonged at the tournament, with Curaçao’s performance standing out as part of that wider trend.
The first 48-team World Cup had raised questions before the tournament about whether an expanded field would create more one-sided games. Former Argentina international Pablo Zabaleta said the group stage had largely answered those concerns.
“You can see how those favourite teams have been struggling a little bit in the group stages,” Zabaleta said. “These days, you don’t have easy games.”
The TSG said the tournament has also produced more attacking football. Tom Gardner of FIFA Football Performance Insights said goals per game have increased compared with the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, with the 2026 tournament sitting just under three goals per game after the group stage.
The group also pointed to fast ball recovery as a major factor in successful teams’ performances. Gardner said winning teams were regaining possession, on average, four seconds faster than losing teams, a trend FIFA plans to track through the knockout rounds.
The panel praised rule changes aimed at reducing time-wasting and improving the pace of matches. Zabaleta said the changes have forced players and goalkeepers to restart play more quickly, improving the rhythm of games.
Former Denmark striker and former Sweden coach Jon Dahl Tomasson said he welcomed the reduction in time-wasting, saying football must protect its entertainment value.
The TSG also noted that hydration breaks have affected matches tactically, giving teams a chance to adjust during each half while allowing players to recover physically.
For Curaçao, the recognition from FIFA’s technical panel adds another layer to its first World Cup appearance. Even with a heavy defeat to Germany, the team’s competitiveness and historic draw with Ecuador placed it among the examples FIFA used to show that the expanded tournament has given smaller football nations a real platform.