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The goalkeeper who delivered Curaçao its first World Cup point doesn’t play for one of the top clubs in Europe, or even the top tier in the U.S.
Eloy Room of the USL Championship’s Miami FC recorded 15 saves in Curaçao’s scoreless draw against Ecuador on Saturday night in Kansas City. The match marked the first World Cup point for the tiny island nation, which is appearing in the tournament for the first time.
Room, 37, didn’t have a great start to the World Cup. He was also in goal for Curaçao’s opening game, a 7–1 loss to Germany. Now, he holds the record for the second-most saves in a World Cup match, behind U.S. keeper Tim Howard’s 16 saves in 2014.
After the match, Room joked about his historic performance: “I think I need a statue in Curaçao I think now.”
Room was born in the Netherlands, but chose to represent Curaçao on the national level.
“People called me crazy when I switched from Holland to Curaçao, but I had a goal in mind,” Room said after the game. “What people said didn’t matter. And at the end I’m here, so I think I was right.”
Curaçao is an autonomous island nation in the Caribbean within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The king, queen, and princess of the Netherlands watched the Dutch team play in Houston on Saturday afternoon, then flew to Kansas City to see Curaçao. The royal family danced with the team in the locker room after the match.
Room’s career has spanned clubs in Europe, MLS, and the USL Championship. He spent much of his career with clubs in the Netherlands and spent five seasons and won the 2020 MLS Cup with the Columbus Crew before joining Miami FC in December.
Miami FC’s CEO Nick Sakiewicz told Front Office Sports the game was a “total flashback” to Howard, who had been on the New York MetroStars (now Red Bulls) when Sakiewicz worked in the front office. As for Room, Sakiewicz says he’s been one of the club’s best players this year since joining the team, which is performing better than last season.
“The whole organization is so proud of him,” he says. “He’s gonna get a big welcome home, that’s for sure.”
The main second-tier league in the U.S., the USL has fingerprints all over the World Cup. More than 30 players came through one of their teams, and Room is one of five current players in the tournament—two for Curaçao, and three for Haiti. Eleven U.S. players came through the USL and four have ownership stakes in its clubs. A number of referees and broadcasters in the tournament have also built their chops in the USL.
“I think it validates for us our place in the U.S. Soccer ecosystem,” Paul McDonough, the USL’s new president and CEO, tells FOS.
Room is one of two keepers from small island nations, closer to the end of their careers who have gone viral at the tournament. The other is Cape Verde’s Vozinha, 40, who was in the net for a similarly spectacular draw against Spain. “As a former goalkeeper, I know that 37 is not old,” says Sakiewicz, who is also CEO of the Sports Performance Hub of Miami-Dade, the developer of the team’s new stadium.
It remains to be seen whether Room will rejoin Miami FC once the World Cup is over—the league isn’t taking a break for the tournament—or if he gets a call-up to a bigger club.
“When a player performs like that and has great opportunities to advance and do better, my philosophy’s always been never to hold them back,” Sakiewicz says. “And if he has an opportunity to go play at a higher level or a bigger club, we’ll be the first to throw him a party.”
McDonough shares a similar sentiment.
“I’m sure the club and the player are getting inundated, and you know what, when you save 15 saves at a World Cup game in front of that type of crowd against the opponent you just played against, then his phone does deserve to ring,” McDonough says. “And I think it’s good for him, and I think it’s good for the club, and I think it’s good for the country. And it’s good for us.”
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