00:01When Curaçao qualified for the World Cup, they completed a fairytale journey onto football's grandest stage.
00:08With a population of just over 150,000, they are the smallest country to ever qualify for the tournament finals.
00:16But what I said in the beginning also in the Dutch language, everybody gets a prize.
00:22Why not Curaçao? So that's what we tried to do.
00:28Undeterred by their 7-1 loss to Germany in their opening game, Curaçao's fighting spirit shone through against Ecuador, achieving
00:35an historic milestone.
00:39By holding Ecuador to a goalless draw, the Blue Wave earned its maiden World Cup point, and they had goalkeeper
00:45Aloy Ruhm to thank.
00:49Ruhm's heroics denied a relentless Ecuador attack, making an extraordinary 15 saves, the second most in a single game in
00:57World Cup history.
01:01Curaçao's draw against Ecuador was another in a string of upsets at this World Cup, as the tournament minnows achieved
01:07an historic milestone.
01:16DR Congo are participating at their first World Cup in 52 years, and their first since competing as Zaire way
01:24back in 1974.
01:26It's an historic occasion for the African side, though preparations for their drought-breaking tournaments were anything but smooth sailing.
01:35Before arriving in the United States, they were forced to spend three weeks in isolation in Europe due to an
01:40Ebola outbreak in their home country.
01:43The preparation was very good. It didn't affect us on anything. We prepared very good in Europe. Everything was perfect.
01:55Despite this complication, the Leopards were full of belief heading into their first game against Portugal, one of the highly
02:01fancied teams at the World Cup.
02:04It means the world to be a part of this team that's going to attend to the first World Cup
02:11since 52 years.
02:13I'm really happy, really proud of it, and I can't look forward. I can't wait to play the first game.
02:19All the teams feel very good, and we're confident to do a good game against one of the best teams
02:25in the world.
02:27Not only did DR Congo score their first goal at the World Cup, they also secured their first points, with
02:33Johan Wisser heading home to give his side a scarcely believable 1-1 draw.
02:39After 52 years away from the World Cup, DR Congo conjured up the most famous results in their history, while
02:46overcoming a severe Ebola outbreak.
02:49The squad was forced into isolation before arriving in the United States. Preparations that were anything but smooth sailing.
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