"In nearly a century of men's World Cup football, only four Caribbean nations have ever qualified. This year, more finally will, but many of their supporters, especially Haitians, will be unable to travel to cheer them on, blocked by immigration rules that sit uneasily beside sport's language of unity. It is a dissonance capturing a deeper truth: Caribbean athletes are welcome on the global stage but Caribbean people less so."
"For small island states in the Caribbean, with fragile economies, thin industrial bases and histories scarred by colonial extraction, sport has long served as development infrastructure: a pathway to scholarships, a ladder out of poverty, a source of global visibility and a generator of national confidence. This is development in practice. The UN and other institutions now speak of sport for development, linking to education, health, gender equality, social inclusion and peacebuilding."
The United States will co-host the 2026 World Cup while simultaneously enforcing immigration rules that restrict who can attend. In nearly a century of men's World Cup football, only four Caribbean nations have qualified, though more will qualify this year; many supporters, especially Haitians, face travel bans. Caribbean athletes win global recognition while Caribbean people encounter mobility barriers. Sport functions as development infrastructure for small island states: a pathway to scholarships, economic mobility, visibility and national confidence. The UN links sport to education, health, gender equality, social inclusion and peacebuilding. In the Caribbean, sport operates as a primary instrument of survival, identity and regional unity, exemplified by cricket's historic unifying role.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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