WILLEMSTAD - Dick Advocaat has once again written football history. The 78-year-old Dutch manager is now officially the oldest head coach ever to appear at a FIFA World Cup, after Curaçao secured a dramatic 0–0 draw against Jamaica to clinch its first-ever World Cup qualification.

For Advocaat — who has coached seven national teams, including three spells with the Netherlands and a 1994 World Cup quarterfinal run — this may be his most remarkable achievement yet. Curaçao, an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands with just over 150,000 inhabitants, is now the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup.

Forced to watch from home

Advocaat took over the Curaçao national team in January last year, but was forced to miss the decisive match. The coach left Jamaica over the weekend due to family circumstances and followed the match from his home in The Hague.

“It was a very difficult decision to leave the boys here,” he said before the game. “I made this choice with a heavy heart, but family comes before football. From the Netherlands, I stayed in close contact with the staff, and I have full confidence in this group of players.”

At 2:00 a.m. Dutch time, Advocaat sat down in front of the television, maintaining regular phone contact with team manager Wouter Jansen, who passed along instructions to assistants Dean Gorré and Cor Pot during halftime.

A thriller until the final whistle

At a packed Independence Park in Kingston, Curaçao survived several dangerous moments. Jamaica struck the woodwork three times in the second half, while Curaçao also created chances that forced goalkeeper Andre Blake into action.

The dream nearly collapsed deep into stoppage time. In the 94th minute, substitute Jeremy Antonisse appeared to bring down Isaac Hayden in the penalty area, prompting referee Ivan Barton to point to the spot.

But after a VAR review, Barton watched the incident again and — to the fury of the home crowd — overturned the penalty, ruling there was no foul. Moments later, the final whistle blew, and Curaçao’s historic celebration began.

Advocaat is expected to respond publicly later on Wednesday.

Oldest World Cup coach in history

At 78, Advocaat surpasses the previous record held by Germany’s Otto Rehhagel, who coached Greece at the 2010 World Cup at age 71.

For Curaçao, preparations now begin for a historic debut on football’s biggest stage — one that will forever be associated with the remarkable achievement of the island nation and its veteran coach.