By Sally Tippett Rains
There is a Cardinals connection to the World Cup game of Curacao vs. Ecuador in Kansas City this Saturday (June 20.) The Cardinals new ambidextrous pitcher has a special interest in the Curacao team.
Jurrangelo Cjintje, now at Double A Springfield will be rooting for team Curacao in the FIFA Soccer World Cup match because it is his home counry team.
“He’s excited about the World Cup,” his former high school coach Jorge Aguas told STL Sports Page. “He’s been watching it and talking about it too. He’s super happy that Curacao is in it for the first time.”
Jurangelo Cijntje grew up in Curaçao, and though he will be less than three hours from the game on Saturday, he will be with the team in Wichita at his own game. Cijntje was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft and came to the Cardinals over the winter in the Brendan Donovan trade.
His coach Jorge Aguas told us that while he did not play soccer in high school he did play as a kid growing up.
“He would play in P.E. class or on the playground or park, along with basketball,” said Aguas. “He did not play dedicated soccer because of his dad (who was a baseball player in The Netherlands.)
The Springfield Cardinals are on the road in Wichita during the actual game—they play the Wichita Wind Surge starting at 6:05 and then at 7 p.m. in Kansas City, Ecuador and Curaçao will face off in a Group E match for the FIFA World Cup.
He knows a little about representing Curacao on a team on the national stage, himself as he was in the Little League World Series.
Cijntje grew up in Willemstad, Curacao, a Dutch Caribbean island located in the southern Caribbean Sea, about 37 miles (60 km) north of the Venezuelan coast.
His team, the Pariba Little League from Willemstad played in the 2016 Little League World Series before he moved to Florida where he finished high school (and played for Aguas.)
They won two games but did not win the Little League World Series.
Curaçao, which is a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, made history when they qualified for the FIFA World Cup because they are the smallest nation ever to qualify for global finals by both population and land mass. Their team is known as the “Blue Wave.”
The “blue” and “wave” reference is due to their love of their country and wanting to highlight the beautiful turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. The fans are enthusiastic and wear bright blue.
The team they will play, Ecuador wears the colors of their flag—yellow, blue and red and are known as “La Tri” or sometimes “La Tricolor,” in reference to the tri-color flag.
There is a group fans in St. Louis who will be waving that flag.
Santiago Navarro, the president of the Ecuadorian Society of St. Louis (ESSL) says he will be rooting for Ecuador in that match. Aong with being a soccer fan, he is a fan of Cardinals baseball. He says with all the Latino players on the Cardinals and in the system, there are a lot of players for his group to root on.
“Ecuadorians in St. Louis feel a natural connection to the Latino players, even if they represent different countries, because they are part of the broader story of Latino talent and culture in professional sports.
“Many Ecuadorian families follow both soccer and baseball, so it’s common to see fans cheering for Ecuador on the soccer field and the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.”
There are no players on the current big club who have ties to either of the teams who will be playing soccer in Kansas City.
The Cardinals organization understand about the large Latino fanbase they have and offer a Spanish broadcast of the games that features Polo Ascencio as the play-by-play announcer and Bengie Molina doing the color commentating. Spanish speaking St. Louisans or those who have immigrated from a Latin country appreciate that.
“I am a Cardinals fan and I will be at the upcoming games June 23 & 24 to root for them,” said Navarro. “While we cannot say with certainty which Cardinals players may be supporting Ecuador, St. Louis has a strong Latin American presence within baseball, and many fans from across Latin America follow both soccer and baseball closely.”
Navarro is so prud of his Ecuadorian heritage that he told us no mention of Ecuador, sports and especially baseball would be complete without the mention of Jaime Jarren, “the most famous Equadorian in baseball.”
Jarren, according to baseball writer Rob Rains is the “Vin Scully of broadcasting the Dodgers only he is Hispanic.” The legendary broadcaster was awarded the Ford C. Frick Award for Broadcasting in 1998 at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. There are many other Latinos in the Hall of Fame including St. Louis’ own Orlando Cepeda, Minnie Minoso and Carlos Beltran. And in 2028 there are a couple of others who will most likely be inducted.
Currently, the 40-man roster includes Iván Herrera (catcher, from Panama), Pedro Pagés (catcher, from Venezuela), and José Fermín (infielder, from the Dominican Republic.)
“The Cardinals have a long tradition of players from across Latin America, including the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Venezuela, and Mexico,” said Navarro.
Curacao lost their first game to Germany, 7-1, but the island fans were not concerned with the seven goal Germany scored as they are a powerhouse. They were just happy their team scored one goal, and the fans went nuts.
“That was their first goal ever in the World Cup!,” said Aguas. “They played Germany and got a goal. Now that’s something.”
The ESSL is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the rich heritage of Ecuadorian culture, customs, and traditions, and its members are excited to see Ecuador in the World Cup.
They are a tight-knit group and recently met for a picnic in Kirkwood Park in St. Louis and held a Watch Party for the Ecuador vs Ivory Coast June 14.
“We’re helping promote enthusiasm around Ecuador’s World Cup journey by connecting fans, sharing information about events, and creating opportunities for our community to come together,” said Navarro. “It is certainly an exciting time for Ecuadorian soccer fans, with the FIFA World Cup coming to North America,” said Navarro.
“We just held our watch party at Sports & Social for the opening game against Ivory Coast.”
They watched the Spanish broadcast on Telemundo STL and the results weren’t good for Ecuador, but they are hoping for better luck Saturday.
There will be a contingent of Ecuadorians and members of ESSL traveling to Kansas City for the match.
“Many plan to participate in the ‘banderazo’ (spirited fan rallies before a major soccer match where supporters wave flags, sing chants and show team spirt) as well as tailgate festivities being coordinated by the Ecuadorian community and association in Kansas City before the game.”
For those not making the trek to Kansas City the ESSL is inviting fans to gather at Sports & Social at Ballpark Village to watch the match together.
“We expect it to be a lively atmosphere where supporters can cheer on Ecuador alongside fellow fans,” said Navarro.
On the other side of that game, the Caribbean Association of St. Louis (CASTL) serves as the primary hub for those from Curaçao and others from the broader Carribean community who live in St. Louis. They are also excited to see their team in the World Cup.
“Soccer is one of the strongest cultural touchpoints for Ecuadorians,” said Navarro. “Matches like these bring together people of all ages and backgrounds.”
FIFA World Cup Mania is running rampant. Nearly everyone is following the action.
Susana Ferrer of St. Louis, whose family came here from Venezuela says her family is paying close attention to the action.
“We are watching the games,” she said. “Since Venezuela and Italy didn’t make it to the World Cup, we really don’t have any favorites, but we’ll be rooting for the Spanish countries and of course Team USA.”
Why is soccer so popular around the world?
“People don’t need to have anything (equipment) or pay money to anybody, they play it even in the streets,” said Juana Figueroa of St. Louis who grew up in Peru. “If they don’t have a ball, they make one with socks. The poorest people used to do that when Chinese cheap balls were not available.”
She added that since Peru did not make it, she is not as interested, but she has a memory of the last time Peru was in the World Cup, which was 2018.
“My family here in St Louis, gathered in one of our houses to watch the games, dressed in Peruvian tee-shirts, including my young granddaughter, Claudia,” she said. “All of us were cheering for our team, and they were also cheering in every household in Peru and anywhere in the world.”
Her husband, Nestor Figueroa played soccer in Peru and when they moved to the United States, he volunteered as a soccer coach in the schools their children attended.
“When we first moved to the neighborhood we currently live in, we met a young boy across the street,” she said. “He was a child playing soccer, and when he learned about us being from Peru, he showed so much interest. He was asking Nestor about it. I remember Nestor gave him a few cassettes with Football classes from the best players in the world.”
It’s safe to say that international families all around St. Louis and the United States for that matter are excited for the World Cup to be on U.S. soil.
“We would not be surprised if players from neighboring countries are keeping an eye on the tournament and cheering for fellow South Americans,” said Navarro, rooting on Ecuador.
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On a side note, we will be in Kansas City the day of the Ecuador vs. Curacao game. We are going for a baseball reason, interviewing some former Cardinals players who will be playing at a ball field a half mile from the field the Sporting KC plays in the MLS, so there will be a lot of World Cup events going on.
We will be watching the Kansas City Monarchs vs. Milwaukee Milkmen in American Association, Independent Baseball League. The game is at Legends Field, a 4,500 seat venue located in the Village West area of Kansas City, near Childrens Mercy Park, home to Sporting Kansas City of MLS) and the Kansas Speedway.
Some of the activities we look forward to seeing are:
- Stadium Festivities: Sporting Park will feature open-air watch parties, live music from local entertainers, interactive fan activations, and local food and drink vendors.
- Official FIFA Fan Festival: Located just a few miles away at the National WWI Museum and Memorial, this free, massive watch party will show World Cup matches, including Ecuador vs. Curaçao, on massive giant screens.
- Live Entertainment at Fan Fest: The “Sportstown USA” weekend culminates on June 20 with live performances, including a special appearance by Afro-Cuban music star Cimafunk.
Ecuador and Curaçao will face off in a Group E match for the FIFA World Cup 2026 at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO, on Saturday, June 20. Kickoff for Match 34 is scheduled for 7:00 PM CDT.
Now you know a little more about one of the matches in the FIFA World Cup.
