Colombia missed the 2022 World Cup, which still feels strange to type. This is a country whose 2014 run — James Rodríguez's six goals, the salsa-step goal celebrations, the Falcao-less attacking joy — was the breakout moment of that whole tournament. They were eliminated by Brazil in a quarterfinal that was less a soccer match than a cynical Brazilian ankle-tackle clinic, and the country took it personally. Then they didn't make Russia in 2018's knockouts, then they missed Qatar entirely. Eight years of waiting. They're back.
This Colombia is built differently from the 2014 version. Néstor Lorenzo, the Argentine manager who learned under José Pékerman during that golden run, took over in 2022 and has constructed a team around Luis Díaz — now at Bayern Munich, terrifying — with James as the elder statesman who still gets a starting role because the alternative is unthinkable to a country that loves him. The depth is the story: Daniel Muñoz at Palace, Jefferson Lerma alongside him, Richard Ríos in midfield, and a real center-forward question that Lorenzo is solving by committee.
They land in Group K with Portugal, Uzbekistan, and DR Congo — a winnable group, a real path to the Round of 16, and a likely Round of 16 against a UEFA superpower. The 2014 run is the ceiling. The realistic floor is going out in the group with stories to tell. Colombian soccer, at its best, is joyful in a way most national teams aren't. They are worth your time.
Week 1 Update: Colombia 3, Uzbekistan 1 — Los Cafeteros took care of business the way a team that's been here before takes care of business. Díaz was electric, the midfield suffocated Uzbekistan's supply lines, and Colombia are top of Group K with three points and the swagger of a team that remembers what 2014 felt like. Uzbekistan did score their first-ever World Cup goal — a moment worth respecting — but it didn't change the outcome. Portugal drew. The group is Colombia's to lose.
Matchday 2 Update: Colombia 1, DR Congo 0 — Daniel Muñoz, the Crystal Palace right-back who does the thankless work so Díaz can shine, became the hero in the 76th minute, arriving on the right side of the penalty area and finishing with the composure of a striker. Díaz and James orchestrated for most of the night — James's passing in the final third was vintage 2014 — but it was Muñoz who found the breakthrough. Six points from two matches. Colombia are through to the knockouts with a game to spare. Group K is theirs.
Matchday 3 Update: Colombia and Portugal played out a 0-0 draw that suited both teams fine — Los Cafeteros already through, Portugal needing only a point. Seven points, top of Group K, and a Round of 32 date with Ghana in Kansas City. Díaz barely broke a sweat. James looked like he had all the time in the world. Colombia head to the knockouts as one of the most dangerous sides in the draw, and nobody is talking about them as much as they should be.
Round of 32 (July 3): Colombia 1-0 Ghana — Jhon Arias settled it in the 14th minute with a clean finish, and Colombia's backline held it for 76. Los Cafeteros weren't flashy about it; they didn't need to be. Díaz pressed and harried, James drifted and played the one pass that mattered, and Queiroz's Ghana never quite found the opening to level. Colombia advance to face Switzerland in the Round of 16 and this team is playing like they know something the rest of the bracket hasn't figured out yet. Eight years since they missed Qatar entirely, and they're quietly becoming the most dangerous side left in the draw.
Round of 16 (July 7): Colombia 0-0 Switzerland (AET) — Colombia lose 3-4 on penalties, and their World Cup ends the way nobody wanted but anyone might have feared. Los Cafeteros outplayed Switzerland in stretches across 120 goalless minutes in Vancouver — more possession, more chances, the better team on the eye — and still couldn't find the goal that would have made the shootout irrelevant. Davinson Sánchez missed. Cucho Hernández missed. Díaz, Quintero, and Campaz all scored; it wasn't enough. James Rodríguez played his final World Cup minutes without fanfare, exactly as his whole career demanded. Eight years after missing Qatar, Colombia returned to the knockout rounds and went out in a penalty shootout in Vancouver. The Díaz story goes on at club level. The dream, for now, is done.
