Returning to the World Cup after 16 years! Paraguay’s miracle, “Made in Argentina”

Written by Han Bing After 16 years, Paraguayan fans can finally rejoice once more — on the night of September 4th local time, Paraguay drew 0-0 with Ecuador at home, securing their 9th World Cup finals appearance. Supporters thronged the National Pantheon of Heroes in Asunción to celebrate wildly. For this South American nation of just 7 million people, this is one of the few moments that calls for a nationwide festivity. President Peña even issued a decree declaring September 5th a national holiday to mark the qualification.

Sixteen years ago, Paraguay reached the quarterfinals of the South Africa World Cup, turning downtown Asunción into a sea of celebration. However, in the next three World Cups, the “Red and White” team failed to progress past the South American qualifiers, performing poorly. They finished last in 2014 at 9th place, missed the playoff by 2 points in 2018, and ranked 8th in 2022, losing hope of qualification early on.

This time Paraguay secured qualification with one round to spare as the 6th place team in South America, credit largely going to Argentine coach Alfaro.

Paraguayan football went through a difficult transitional period as veterans like Santa Cruz, Gamarra, Acuña, and Ayala retired, causing the team to lose its trademark solid defense. After being eliminated in the group stage of the 2024 Copa America, the Paraguayan Football Association appointed Alfaro — who had led Costa Rica to a win over Paraguay in the last group match and previously guided Ecuador to the 2022 World Cup — as the hope to rescue Paraguayan football.

Before Alfaro took charge, Paraguay had only one win and scored just one goal in six qualifying matches. He immediately strengthened the defense by reinstating 36-year-old Botafogo goalkeeper Fernández, appointing Palmeiras center-back G. Gómez as captain, and adding left-back Alonso and versatile midfielder D. Gómez. The rebuilt defense kept clean sheets in the first three games against Uruguay, Brazil, and Ecuador. It wasn’t until his 10th match in charge, an away game against Brazil, that Alfaro suffered his first World Cup qualifier defeat.

On offense, Alfaro also made crucial changes. Torino’s Sanabria became the main striker, scoring consecutive goals against Venezuela and Argentina, and providing the winning assist against Chile, helping Paraguay secure all 9 points. Almirón and Enciso also performed well upfront, forming a potent attacking trio.

However, Paraguayan football owes thanks not only to this Argentine coach. In 2011, Martino led the team to the Copa America final — Paraguay’s best international result since winning the tournament in 1979. After Martino, Paraguay successively hired five Argentine coaches: Díaz, Berizzo, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Cantero, and Alfaro, ultimately achieving great success. Paraguay’s left-back Sanders, Asamendia, right-back Cáceres, defensive midfielder Rojas, and attacking midfielder Cacú are all naturalized players with Argentine roots; Cacú even represented Argentina’s U20 team in the U20 World Cup. Not only Argentine coaches but also Argentine players have been fundamental to Paraguay’s qualification success.

Additionally, Paraguay’s football success is closely linked to recent achievements in youth development. In 2023, Paraguay’s U15 team won the South American U15 Championship, while the U17 and U20 teams qualified for the 2025 U17 and U20 World Cups respectively. The U23 Olympic team also reached the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics. Key midfielders D. Gómez and Enciso participated in the Paris Games; Enciso just transferred from Premier League’s Brighton to Ligue 1’s Strasbourg this summer, attracting interest from Chelsea.

Alfaro’s success also marks a new breakthrough for Argentine coaches. Among South America’s 10 national teams, 6 are led by Argentinians. Besides Argentina (Scaloni), Uruguay (Bielsa), Ecuador (Beccacece), and Colombia (Lorenzo) all qualified under Argentine coaches. Venezuela (Batista) is also hopeful for a playoff spot. Furthermore, the host nation USA’s coach is Argentine (Pochettino). In next year’s World Cup, Argentina may become the largest source country for participating team coaches.