Haiti's national football team, Les Grenadiers, has made a historic return to the FIFA World Cup after a 52-year absence, qualifying for the 2026 tournament despite playing all home matches abroad due to gang-controlled stadiums back home, including the damaged Sylvio Cator National Stadium in Port-au-Prince. The team, drawn into a gruelling group alongside Brazil and Morocco, was eliminated in the first round but won widespread admiration, with tens of thousands of diaspora fans travelling across the United States to fill stadiums and cheer the players on. For many Haitians, the qualification — announced on November 18, 2025, the anniversary of the Battle of Vertières (the decisive 1803 battle that secured Haiti's independence) — represented far more than sport, offering a moment of national pride and a counter-narrative to the gang violence and political instability that have defined the country's image in international media.