Haitians in Connecticut dream of first World Cup win versus Scotland

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — When he was 11, Andréjean Fleurant got in trouble for getting home around 2 a.m. after partying in the streets of Gonaïves with a rara band. Why? Because Haiti had qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 1973. 

Now 63, Fleurant wants to see Les Grenadiers do something they did not the first time around: win at least one match on the global stage during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In an interview Thursday inside Lakay Restoran in Bridgeport, Connecticut, he said Haiti’s best chance to win is on Saturday, when the team will face its weakest opponent in the group stage, Scotland.  Scotland is ranked 41st in FIFA’s rankings, while Haiti’s other opponents in the group stage, Brazil and Morocco, are in sixth and seventh place, respectively.

“Ayiti, bat! Ayiti, bat (Haiti, win),” Fleurant said in Haitian Creole, his voice echoing his wish inside the eatery.

“I don’t care what the score will be, I just want Haiti to win,” Fleurant, a member of the restaurant’s staff, added.

After Haiti takes on Scotland at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on June 13, Les Grenadiers will face five-time World Cup champions Brazil on June 19, then African giants Morocco on June 24. Haiti’s matchup against Scotland is the Caribbean country’s best chance on paper to rack its first World Cup win, making fans ever so thirsty for victory on Saturday night. 

“I would love for us to win,” said Johnny Lubin, a receptionist at Jean’s Diner, another restaurant in Bridgeport. 

“If anything, at least score,” Lubin, 18, said. “I would start jumping up and down, obviously. I would hope we win.”