Haiti: The impossible mission of international football

When Graham Taylor was England manager, his role was described as an “impossible job” by a documentary team. Sébastien Migne smiles ironically when asked if he holds the position that really deserves this title.

Migne is Haiti’s new coach, with a mission to lead the country to its first men’s World Cup in half a century.

This challenge is all the more difficult to meet as the political and social chaos reigning on the Caribbean island does not allow Migne to set foot there in the foreseeable future.

Gangs now control most of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and have prevented Prime Minister Ariel Henry from returning to the country after a trip abroad, leading to his resignation. BBC News reports that parts of the country have become lawless zones.

Haiti has been ravaged by gang violence for years, but violence perpetrated by armed groups intensified in late February.

Although the gangs have said their main goal is to oust Ariel Henry, the Prime Minister of Haiti, the violence continues. They attacked police, looted universities and libraries, burned pharmacies and forced the closure of Port-au-Prince’s largest hospital.

So why did Migne decide to manage the national football team?

“Honestly, I have a lot of enthusiasm,” the 51-year-old Frenchman told BBC Sport. “It’s not the best contract of my life, but it’s important at the moment.

“The project is interesting, Haiti has a good history in football. The idea is to write a new story with the players, and we have a fantastic opportunity because the United States, Canada and Mexico have already qualified [en tant qu’hôtes conjoints].

“They know exactly what we want to achieve, which is to qualify for the World Cup.

The three North American nations will co-host the 2026 World Cup, which will be the first to bring together 48 teams. Besides the hosts, three other teams from the Concacaf region will qualify, and two more will participate in the inter-confederation play-offs to secure additional places.

This opens the door for Haiti to its first men’s World Cup since 1974, when it reached the finals in West Germany. The Haitians lost their three group matches, conceding 14 goals against Argentina, Italy and Poland.

Their long road to the finals begins with the first of two Concacaf qualifying group stages, with an opening match against Saint Lucia on June 6.

It was supposed to be a home game for Haiti, but that’s out of the question for now. The match against Saint Lucia will be played in Barbados, and Migne does not know what will happen next, or where they will play, or who will play for them.

“It’s difficult, because it’s impossible for me to go to Haiti to discover new talents and trust local coaches to give me complete information,” he explains.

“For example, I tried to convince a player to come with us for the next matches. We needed administrative papers, but all the embassies are closed in the country.”

Migne is used to chaos, with coaching duties in Syria on his CV. A veteran of management in Africa, he has already managed national teams in Congo, Kenya and Equatorial Guinea.

But he has already tasted World Cup glory, serving as Cameroon’s assistant manager at Qatar 2022.

Although Cameroon failed to advance out of the group stage, they stunned Brazil 1-0 in their final match – a result that inspired them to return to the biggest show on the planet.

Of course, some friends told me: ‘You’re completely crazy,'” he says. “That may be true, but I believe in this project. I believe we can create a big surprise. We have quality.”

Since his appointment on March 10, Migne has set about making the most of a difficult job. For its first match, Haiti drew 1-1 against French Guiana. Since then, he has had his coaches and scouts travel the world in search of talent.

One of the main roles of the coach of a small national team is to convince players who are eligible because of their family and heritage to represent their country. Migne has approached Wolves striker Jeanricner Bellegarde – born in France but of Haitian origin – and Hull City winger Jaden Philogene with a view to a possible call-up.

“Step by step, we try to establish contact with them to present the project to them and convince them,” explains Migne. “It’s a long process.

As a lover of English football, Migne especially strives to convince English players. He spoke to BBC Sport while wearing a Liverpool sweater and spoke of his admiration for Jurgen Klopp.

“After taking Haiti to the World Cup, I want to manage in the Premier League or the Championship, I would be delighted,” he says.

But before that, Migne must try to guide war-torn Haiti to the World Cup.

So, is his job really impossible?

” It’s not [impossible]. It’s interesting.