Historic qualification overshadowed by restrictions: Haiti’s World Cup return faces crisis | OneFootball

Haiti fans face a U.S travel ban roadblock

Historic qualification overshadowed by restrictions: Haiti’s World Cup return faces crisis

Haiti’s long awaited return to the FIFA World Cup should have sparked nationwide celebration.

Instead the achievement arrives under the cloud of U.S travel ban that could leave thousands of Haitian supporters watching the tournament from afar.

Haiti’s Historic Qualification

Haiti sealed their place at the 2026 World Cup on Wednesday topping a tough qualifying group that included Honduras, Costa Rica & Nicaragua.

It marks only the Caribbean nation’s second appearance at the tournament and their first since 1974 despite being forced to play "home" matches 500 mile away in Curacao due to ongoing instability back home.

Their decisive win against Nicaragua on neutral soil underlined the resilience of team long affected by political turmoil, gang violence and the aftermath of President Jovenel Moïse’s assassination in 2021.

Travel ban Casts a shadow over celebration

The U.S government led by President Donald Trump issued executive order in June adding Haiti to list of 12 countries subject to travel ban.

The measure prevents both immigrant and non immigrant Haitian nationals from entering the United States citing national security and visa overstay statistics.

This means thousands of Haitian fans including diaspora of more than 850000 in the U.S , may struggle to attend their team’s first World Cup in over half century.

World Cup participation not in danger

Despite the restrictions, the executive order includes sporting exemption allowing athletes, technical staff & immediate family members to enter the U.S for major international events such as the FIFA World Cup or the Olympic Games.

As a result, Haiti’s squad can compete without issue. Curacao who also qualified for the World Cup for the first time , benefit from the same exemption.