Ergilio Hato

Ergilio Hato was the regular goalkeeper for Netherland Antilles/Curaçao in the 1940s and 50s, and in 1946 astounded fans with his great athleticism in a 3-3 draw against the mighty Feyenoord in front of 37,000 Rotterdam fans, during a nine-match summer tour of the Netherlands. The attendance was nearly as many as the entire population of Curaçao at time. At that year’s Central American and Caribbean Games at Barranquilla, Colombia, Hato and Curaçao won a bronze medal, and at Guatemala in 1950 he won a gold medal with the Netherlands Antilles selection representing the NAOC, having played in their first ever official international just two years earlier.

Hato played in goal at the 1952 Olympics, but was also a useful outfielder when needed, and was a regular penalty taker, but he missed a 25th minute spot kick against Turkey at the Olympics which, if he had converted it, would have leveled the scores at 1-1. His services as an outfield player were required at the 1953 CCCF (Confederación Centroamericana y del Caribe de Fútbol) Championship in Costa Rica, when he was used as a forward and scored two goals in the 8-0 win over Nicaragua, and another two in the 4-2 win over Panama. He was also a member of the 1955 Pan American Games bronze medal-winning team, when he was back in goal. It was the only time Netherland Antilles entered the competition. They won the bronze by virtue of finishing third in a four-team competition, Also in 1955, Hato won a silver medal with Curaçao at the CCCF Championship.

He played for his country 36 times between 1946-57 and his last international appearance was in a 2-1 defeat by Costa Rica in a qualifying match for the 1958 World Cup. Despite many lucrative offers from top teams to play in Europe, he turned them all down to play in his hometown of Willemstad. The Stadion Ergilio Hato in Willemstad is named in his honour.