The Rise of Women’s Soccer in Haiti: A Journey to the World Cup
On February 22, Haiti’s women’s soccer team defeated Chile with a 2-1 scoreline to qualify for their first-ever Women’s World Cup. It wasn’t an easy road for Haiti, both on the field and off. The country is going through a lot of turmoil, but qualifying for the World Cup was a joyous moment for both the country and the team.
The Journey to World Cup Qualification
To qualify for the World Cup, Haiti, also known as Les Grenadiéres, had to play in a three-team playoff with Chile and Senegal. Haiti secured a 4-0 win over Senegal and then a gritty 2-1 win over Chile to punch their ticket. When the World Cup kicks off in July, Haiti will be in Group D along with England, Denmark, and China.
Haiti was able to qualify for the playoff tournament by placing third in their group at the Concacaf W Championship. They secured a 3-0 win over Mexico during that tournament, securing them the spot to play for a World Cup slot.
Melchie Dumornay, also known by Corventina, was the hero in that playoff game against Chile. The 19-year-old scored both goals to send her country to their first World Cup.
Additionally, a couple of players on the roster play college soccer in the United States. Danielle Étienne is a midfielder at Fordham; Milan Pierre-Jerome plays midfield for the Maryland Terrapins; and Lara Larco is a keeper for Georgetown.
Overall, this Haitian team is super young, which makes it even more of an achievement to qualify for the World Cup against the greatest of the greats. The current roster doesn’t have any players above the age of 30, with an average age of 22 and a half.
Making History Amidst Turmoil in Haiti
In 2020, the president of the Haitian Football Federation (FHF), Yves Jean-Bart, was given a lifetime ban from the sport by FIFA after the federation found him guilty of sexual abuse allegations against female players. Jean-Bart was the president from 2000-2020. He has since denied all the allegations, and on March 1, 2023, he announced that he was reclaiming his position as president of the soccer federation after his ban was overturned.
In recent years the country of Haiti has struggled. In addition to the nation still recovering from the devastating earthquake in 2010 that had a catastrophic magnitude of 7.0, they have had to deal with many tragedies in recent years.
The country faced a presidential assassination in 2021, a cholera outbreak, and another catastrophic earthquake hit. Haiti also faces rampant gang violence and widespread food and water shortage throughout, and they are currently experiencing a political crisis. Additionally, COVID-19 exacerbated Haiti’s economic hardship.
The Haitian women’s national team was founded in 1979 and didn’t qualify for any World Cup tournament from 1999 to 2019. Even though support for women’s soccer was few and far between, FHF began initiatives to improve youth national soccer in the country and funds different expenses for the women’s side.
Despite the country and the women’s team not having a ton of resources and through all the darkness, these players came together and made history. Les Grenadiéres are making their country proud.
It will be exciting for everyone to see Haiti take the World Cup stage for the first time this summer after an incredible journey to get there.
Featured image via @fhfhaiti on Instagram
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