Suriname – From Rijkaard to Van Dijk, footballers from Suriname, a former Dutch colony, have changed the fortunes of the Netherlands' national team over the last 30 years. Now, it's Dutch-born players who could help Latin America's smallest nation achieve its World Cup dreams.
For a long time, the story of football in Suriname has been that of how this small country transformed a team 7,000 kilometres away.
After the Netherlands' success in the 1970s, when they rose from the semi-professional doldrums to reach World Cup finals in Germany '74 and Argentina '78, and national hero Johann Cruyff won the Ballon d'Or in 1971, 1973 and 1974, in the decade that followed the country's run of luck seemed to be over.
The Netherlands failed to qualify for the 1982 World Cup in Spain or for Mexico '86, nor for the Euros in France in 1984.
Then came a reprieve – a win at the 1988 Euros in Germany, thanks in large part to the Surinamese-born trio of Frank Rijkaard, Aron Winter and team captain Ruud Gullit.
Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, all born in Suriname, went on to make the Dutch national team shine in the 1990s, with the Netherlands reaching the semi-finals of the France '98 World Cup.
Their heirs today are Virgil van Dijk, Xavi Simons, Georginio Wijnaldum and Denzel Dumfries – all born in the Netherlands to Surinamese parents.
Across the Atlantic, Suriname – an impoverished country of 600,000 people – watched its children and grandchildren help its former coloniser excel. Seedorf did attempt to develop football in his motherland, but despite significant personal investment, the training centre he planned never came to fruition.
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Stars aligning
Today, however, with the 2026 World Cup – hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada – on the horizon, Suriname is hoping to turn the tables.
After years of refusing to do so, since November 2019 the country's football authorities have allowed footballers from its diaspora – most of whom were born in the Netherlands – to play for the national team.
Furthermore, Suriname, despite being located in South America, takes part in the Concacaf World Cup qualifiers – for national teams which are members of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football – thanks to its cultural and historical ties to the Caribbean.
And with the three traditionally dominant countries – the US, Mexico and Canada – automatically qualifying as hosts, and the expansion of the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams, it seems the stars could be aligning to give Suriname its best chance to date of qualifying.
'It's going to happen'
"We've made a lot of progress. We're in the Concacaf Nations League A, among the top 14," Soerin Mathoera, president of the Surinamese Football Association, told French news agency AFP. "We're hoping to qualify for this World Cup and we're making the necessary efforts to bring players of Surinamese origin into the national team."
He added: "It's a journey for them, [some of them] don't know Suriname and have never been here."
Roberto Gödeken, assistant manager of the national team and manager of Suriname's most successful club SV Robinhood, echoed this: "Compared to previous years, the path is much more accessible. We have a good chance of qualifying."
Dutch sports journalist Diederik Samwel, author of the book "Suriname on the Road to the World Cup", says: "There's so much talent here – in the country, in the Netherlands and in the rest of Europe – that it's going to happen at some point. And there's a great opportunity here."
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First steps
Renske Adipi, midfielder for SV Robinhood and the national team, is currently the only player at the club able to make a living from football and is awaiting a transfer abroad.
Samwel calls him an example of a "technically excellent Creole player with great stamina", adding: "Foreign observers are immediately impressed by the talent and skills of these amateur players, [even if] there are sometimes shortcomings at a tactical level."
Suriname took the first step to glory on Friday by beating Puerto Rico 1-0 in their Concacaf World Cup qualifier.
Their main rivals include Costa Rica, who have taken part in every World Cup since Brazil 2014; Honduras (with three appearances, in 1982, 2010 and 2014) and Panama, who last qualified in 2018 for the tournament held in Russia.
If they qualify, says Gödeken: "It would be historic, it would put Suriname on the world map."
This article was adapted from the original version in French (with AFP).
