Shock win over India puts tiny Guam on the map

A country ranked 174th in the world, with a population of 165,000 and coached by a former Bognor Regis player has beaten India in qualifying for the World Cup.

Guam, defeated 16-0 and 19-0 during the 2002 tournament qualifying, recorded their first ever qualifier win with victory over Turkmenistan last week. And now the Asian team, managed by Gary White, has beaten a country with a population of 1.25 billion 2-1 at home.

Guam sit top of Group D in round two of Asian 2018 World Cup qualification. If Guam progress from this round of qualifying they play in an additional round, which sees 12 teams split into two groups of six. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the World Cup. The two third-place teams will play home-and-away over two legs. The winner will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs.

So this is how it feels to make history!
Guam 2-1 India, earlier today in #WCQ
(Pics: @GuamFootball) pic.twitter.com/FtCjUsMSp0

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) June 16, 2015

White, 40, was previously coach of the British Virgin Islands and Bahamas national team. He is one of 16 coaches on a FA scheme created to boost the number of English coaches in the Premier League.

He told Fifa.com: “Our final outcome that we want is to put Guam football on the map, and I think that’s happening already. And for the team to continue to develop. The prize, if you like, is to get to the World Cup, the Asian Cup, but we’ll take each game at a time. It is a special time right now, I don’t want to put an end on it. Can we qualify for the World Cup? We know it’s going to be a tough road.” For India, the embarrassment could have been even greater, as they only grabbed their consolation through captain Sunil Chetri in the 93rd minute.

There won’t be another match in Group D until September, leaving Guam to bask in its well-deserved glory and India to wallow in its misery.

Away matches await – including against Iran and Oman – so this could be as good as it gets for Guam, but the team shouldn’t be underestimated. The national soccer team, known as the Matao, is no longer a pushover at this level. White has turned them into a confident, tightly-knit unit.

“It has been really successful and we’re starting to compete now at that midlevel range in Asia, which when you think about it is kind of crazy with the population and playing resources that we have compared to these other countries,” White said.

Guam defeated Turkmenistan in their opening match of the qualifiers last week. Prior to that, the country had never hosted a World Cup-related match, and the island embraced the prospect of playing against Turkmenistan and India at home.

After yesterday’s win over India, with goals from Brandon McDonald and Travis Nicklaw, the Matao’s song – by Elvis Costello’s brother Ronan MacManus – was played through speakers around the ground.

The Indian players must have the tune ringing in their ears, but that is nothing compared with the opprobrium they will likely face when they get home. The Indian public has low expectations for its soccer team, but losing to Guam is the nadir.