Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room makes a save during the 2026 World Cup Group E match against Ecuador at Kansas City Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Sunday. [AP]
Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room makes a save during the 2026 World Cup Group E match against Ecuador at Kansas City Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Sunday. [AP]

Curacao, making its World Cup debut, earned its first point in the tournament's history on Sunday.

The Curacao national team, led by Dutch manager Dick Advocaat, drew 0-0 with Ecuador in their Group E second-round match at Kansas City Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, at the 2026 North and Central America World Cup.

Having lost 1-7 to Germany in their opening match, Curacao now sit on one point with a record of one draw and one loss — the first World Cup point in the island nation's football history.

Curacao reached the World Cup for the first time under Advocaat, who previously managed South Korea at the 2006 World Cup in Germany. With a population of roughly 150,000, Curacao is also the smallest nation among the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

The undisputed star of the match was veteran goalkeeper Eloy Room, 37.

Room made 15 saves, turning away wave after wave of Ecuador attacks and proving the decisive reason why Ecuador — who fired 28 shots on target and held a clear advantage on paper — could not break Curacao down. The 15-save tally fell just one short of the all-time single-match World Cup record. That record has stood since the 2014 World Cup, when United States goalkeeper Tim Howard made 16 saves against Belgium. FIFA has tracked saves since 1966.


balme@heraldcorp.com