Beyond the pitch: Local Haitian soccer fans unite for national pride | Local

As legions of international fans flood the U.S. for the FIFA World Cup, supporters from Haiti and Iran are conspicuously missing — the victims of strict federal travel restrictions that have mostly barred them from entering the country.

For the Haitian national team, which played every one of its qualifying matches on neutral ground, it was another challenge. For their fans among the Haitian diaspora in the U.S., however, it was an opportunity to show the team some much needed love and appreciation.

“It’s definitely the most popular sport in our country,” Wesley Joseph, who goes to Clark State College and hails from Haiti, told the Springfield News-Sun. “We’ve played it for a long, long time and this is our second time participating in the World Cup. The first time was in 1974.”

Despite being knocked out of the tournament after losing to Brazil 3-0 in Philadelphia on June 19, the Haitian team is still playing for national pride.

Called Les Grenadiers by fans, the Haitian national team is fondly remembered for its run in the 1970s. In 1973 they won the CONCACAF Championship, qualifying for the World Cup in West Germany the next year. There they would lose all their games in the first round but would grab the world’s attention with a goal by Emmanuel Sanon in their 3-1 defeat to Italy that would break goalkeeper Dino Zoff’s record of playing 1,142 minutes without conceding a goal.

The Haitian national team has not played in the World Cup since 1974.

While some members of the diaspora have managed to attend games, the majority of Haiti’s support comes from online fans and watch parties. Among that diaspora are more than 300,000 that entered the U.S. with Temporary Protected Status. The Trump administration’s effort to end TPS has led to a lengthy court battle that has often loomed large over the Haitian community around the country – including a large Haitian population in Springfield.

For Haitians, soccer is a welcome reprieve from a constant barrage of bad news about their home country. Joseph is one of those fans who finds hope in his team’s ability to overcome the odds.

Speaking during one such watch party at the home of a fellow Haitian Clark State College student, Joseph said, “[Haiti has] many famous players, like Johny Placide, the goalkeeper. Also, the forward, Duckens Nazon, is one of the most popular. But the most expensive player we have now is Wilson Isidor; he’s playing at Sunderland. We also have Jean-Ricner Bellegard, who’s playing for Wolverhampton Wanderers.”

Soccer, as it is in much of the Caribbean, is something of an obsession in Haiti, according to Joseph. He fondly remembers how every night youths would play out their dreams in evening championships in Haiti.

“These days we have nothing, but before the country became the way it is now, every night on Saturday, Sunday and Friday night we have what we call ‘ti sourit championships,’ where people play on every corner and street,” he said about soccer in the capital. “Now they don’t do it. Maybe in other cities. But (now) the capital is dying.”

Due to the ongoing violence in Haiti, the national team has not played a game there since at least the summer of 2021.

For fans of Les Grenadiers, the ongoing instability in their country gives this World Cup as much significance as the first one they participated in.

Now, thanks to the Internet, fans are able to connect across long distances, allowing people like Diego Remy in New Jersey to talk soccer with friends in Ohio.

“I support them a lot. I am always talking about my Haitian team on Facebook, Instagram, everywhere I post about players like Placide, Isidor,” he said. “I’m proud of them.”

Remy doubted many back home were able to keep up with the team’s performance, due to frequent electricity outages, among other issues. But the significance of the team reaching the world’s biggest stage will have an impact far away from the pitch. Getting to a World Cup, he explained, was something previous generations could only dream of accomplishing.

“You know now Haiti has a lot of problems politically, a lot of gangsters, a lot of kidnapping. So, this is the best time to show what we can do for Haiti together,” Remy said.

The Haiti national team played their final game on June 24 against Morocco. It may be the end of their World Cup journey, but Remy, Joseph and many others were with their team in spirit.