The tiny island of Curacao is the smallest country to ever reach a FIFA World Cup, an honor it earned with an unbeaten run through an 18-month qualifying tournament in which it outscored opponents by nearly 2½ goals a game. But when it came time to introduce Curacao to the world during last Friday’s tournament draw, the Great One shot well wide of the net, stealing its glory.
“Ka-rak-ko,” Wayne Gretzky sputtered to a global TV audience FIFA estimated at more than a billion while drawing the country, which is pronounced koor-uh-SOW, into Group E for next summer’s tournament.