FIFA World Cup 2026
𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗿: 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗮 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵.
last year - 10/9/2024 5:06 PM GMT-3
Ahead of the start of their FIFA World Cup 26 qualifying campaign, New Caledonia boss Johann Sidaner reveals why he has been wowed by the nation's player pool.
•New Caledonia coach Johann Sidaner speaks exclusively to FIFA
•Frenchman hails his players' technical quality and exceptional professionalism
•Nation set to kick off FIFA World Cup 26 qualifying campaign
Brazil is a vast country of some 220 million inhabitants – and almost as many footballers. The country’s men’s football team currently sit fifth in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men’s World Ranking, and they have lifted the FIFA World Cup™ on no fewer than five occasions.
Tiny New Caledonia has a population around 270,000. The men’s national team lies 160th in the World Ranking and have never graced the World Cup. The New Caledonian Football Association (FCF), which joined FIFA in 2004 after breaking away from the French Football Association, has around 5,000 registered players.
There could hardly be a starker contrast between the two countries but, according to New Caledonia coach Johann Sidaner, the passion, application and a physicality of their footballers bares comparison with their South American counterparts.
“I think that if New Caledonia had as many players as Brazil, they’d be up there with the best teams in the world," he told FIFA.
'They can play with their eyes closed'
After touching down on the Pacific Ocean archipelago two years ago, initially as the technical director of the association’s national teams, Sidaner was instantly enthused by what he found.
“The New Caledonian player embodies everything you could dream of in the profile of a footballer. It’s just incredible,” he explained. “Their game is all about teamwork, passing ability, creativity, intelligence and spirit. They have an ability to play with their eyes closed, they understand one another, are extremely unselfish and possess outstanding physical attributes. They never get injured and are as tough as nails. The list of their qualities is endless. They’re a real joy to coach.”
Strong ties with France and Nantes
The French tactician has clearly succumbed to the New Caledonian charm, although he certainly had a good idea of what he was getting himself in to. Before taking on the mantle of national team coach in September 2022, he spent over a decade as the head of the U-13 to U-15 set-ups at his hometown side Nantes – the club where New Caledonians Antoine Kombouare, who currently serves as the Ligue 1 outfit’s first‑team coach, and Christian Karembeu, a 1998 FIFA World Cup™ winner with France, once plied their trade.
“Jean‑Claude Suaudeau (an iconic Nantes coach during the 1990s) was a big fan of those players,” explained Sidaner. “He liked their creativity, technical brilliance and exceptional athleticism. Christophe Coursimault, a fellow Nantes native and friend of mine going back 25 years, was the national team coach of New Caledonia (2010‑2012), and he told me that the FCF was looking for a new coach."
On his reasoning for leaving home comforts behind and taking the leap, Sidaner explained: "I fancied an experience abroad and the idea of pushing myself. I was coming to the end of a cycle at the Nantes academy. The idea was to see what I was capable of. Above all, I was curious to work with these players, even though I wasn’t starting completely from scratch, so I ended up taking my family with me to the other side of the world.”
An amazing adventure
Two years on, the 47‑year‑old coach has no regrets as he prepares to embark on a fascinating, new adventure: the FIFA World Cup 26™ qualifying campaign. The OFC region is guaranteed one place in the expanded 48‑team tournament, as well as a berth in the intercontinental play‑offs.
Much like Brazil, the national team rely on the right blend of domestic and overseas-based players as they strive to deliver their own version of the jogo bonito, New Caledonian style.
Visit fifa.com for more details.
•New Caledonia coach Johann Sidaner speaks exclusively to FIFA
•Frenchman hails his players' technical quality and exceptional professionalism
•Nation set to kick off FIFA World Cup 26 qualifying campaign
Brazil is a vast country of some 220 million inhabitants – and almost as many footballers. The country’s men’s football team currently sit fifth in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men’s World Ranking, and they have lifted the FIFA World Cup™ on no fewer than five occasions.
Tiny New Caledonia has a population around 270,000. The men’s national team lies 160th in the World Ranking and have never graced the World Cup. The New Caledonian Football Association (FCF), which joined FIFA in 2004 after breaking away from the French Football Association, has around 5,000 registered players.
There could hardly be a starker contrast between the two countries but, according to New Caledonia coach Johann Sidaner, the passion, application and a physicality of their footballers bares comparison with their South American counterparts.
“I think that if New Caledonia had as many players as Brazil, they’d be up there with the best teams in the world," he told FIFA.
'They can play with their eyes closed'
After touching down on the Pacific Ocean archipelago two years ago, initially as the technical director of the association’s national teams, Sidaner was instantly enthused by what he found.
“The New Caledonian player embodies everything you could dream of in the profile of a footballer. It’s just incredible,” he explained. “Their game is all about teamwork, passing ability, creativity, intelligence and spirit. They have an ability to play with their eyes closed, they understand one another, are extremely unselfish and possess outstanding physical attributes. They never get injured and are as tough as nails. The list of their qualities is endless. They’re a real joy to coach.”
Strong ties with France and Nantes
The French tactician has clearly succumbed to the New Caledonian charm, although he certainly had a good idea of what he was getting himself in to. Before taking on the mantle of national team coach in September 2022, he spent over a decade as the head of the U-13 to U-15 set-ups at his hometown side Nantes – the club where New Caledonians Antoine Kombouare, who currently serves as the Ligue 1 outfit’s first‑team coach, and Christian Karembeu, a 1998 FIFA World Cup™ winner with France, once plied their trade.
“Jean‑Claude Suaudeau (an iconic Nantes coach during the 1990s) was a big fan of those players,” explained Sidaner. “He liked their creativity, technical brilliance and exceptional athleticism. Christophe Coursimault, a fellow Nantes native and friend of mine going back 25 years, was the national team coach of New Caledonia (2010‑2012), and he told me that the FCF was looking for a new coach."
On his reasoning for leaving home comforts behind and taking the leap, Sidaner explained: "I fancied an experience abroad and the idea of pushing myself. I was coming to the end of a cycle at the Nantes academy. The idea was to see what I was capable of. Above all, I was curious to work with these players, even though I wasn’t starting completely from scratch, so I ended up taking my family with me to the other side of the world.”
An amazing adventure
Two years on, the 47‑year‑old coach has no regrets as he prepares to embark on a fascinating, new adventure: the FIFA World Cup 26™ qualifying campaign. The OFC region is guaranteed one place in the expanded 48‑team tournament, as well as a berth in the intercontinental play‑offs.
Much like Brazil, the national team rely on the right blend of domestic and overseas-based players as they strive to deliver their own version of the jogo bonito, New Caledonian style.
Visit fifa.com for more details.
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