In addition to being the first in history, Panama's participation in the World Cup will have another special fact. Hernan Dario Gomez will become the first coach to qualify three different teams and compete with them in the World Cup, according to data from Alexis Martin Tamayo.
Colombia - France 1998
The 'Bolillo' led his country to their fourth World Cup, the third consecutive one. Colombia qualified for France 1998 after finishing third in the South American qualifiers, with 28 points, behind Argentina and Paraguay.
Led by Carlos 'Pibe' Valderrama, Hernan Dario's pupils lost to Romania, defeated Tunisia, and were eliminated by England, losing two goals to zero and finishing third in Group G.
'Bolillo' Gomez during his tenure as coach of the Colombian national team. Website: Goal.com
Ecuador - Korea and Japan 2002
In 1999, the Colombian coach took charge of the Ecuadorian National Team, whom he led to their first World Cup in history, Korea and Japan 2002, with an extraordinary qualification, where they finished in second place, above Brazil and Paraguay.
In the tournament, the Ecuadorians couldn't overcome Italy or Mexico, they only defeated Croatia with a minimal difference and fared last in Group G.
Hernan Dario Gomez in the match between Ecuador and Mexico in the 2002 Korea and Japan World Cup. MEXSPORT
Panama - Russia 2018
Panama's qualification for Russia 2018 was more than exciting. The Panamanians had everything against them that night at the Rommel Fernandez stadium, however, Roman Torres appeared, and with a goal in the final minutes, he gave the Panamanians their qualification to their first World Cup in history.
With this, and barring an incredible surprise, 'Bolillo' Gomez will coach a third national team in the greatest football tournament. Interestingly, in all three editions, his teams have been in Group G. In this case, Panama will share the group with Belgium, England, and Tunisia.
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Other coaches with similar statistics
Carlos Queiroz qualified South Africa for Korea and Japan 2002, however, he was dismissed before the tournament began. He participated in South Africa 2010 with Portugal, while he has qualified Iran for Brazil 2014 and Russia 2018.
Similarly, Vahid Halilhodzic, got Ivory Coast to qualify for Korea and Japan 2002, however, he was fired months before. Later, he was in Brazil 2014 with Algeria. Meanwhile, he managed to qualify Japan for Russia 2018 but was fired two weeks ago.
Finally, Bora Milutinovic has participated in five World Cups with five different teams, however, he only qualified with China. He obtained the ticket with Mexico for the 1998 World Cup but was fired before, while when he coached the 'Tri' in '86, Costa Rica in '90, USA in '94, and Nigeria in '98, he already had the qualification.