Pierrot’s Massachusetts Roots Help Haiti World Cup Rally in Boston
Haiti world cup qualification drew a packed Haitian crowd into a dimly lit basement bar in Boston’s Back Bay last week, and Frantzdy Pierrot’s Massachusetts roots gave the celebration a local face. The 31-year-old forward went to middle school and high school in Melrose, turning Haiti’s return into something Boston fans could claim as their own.
Back Bay Crowd Sings
The gathering leaned into “Grenadye, alaso!,” the Haitian Creole chant that loosely translates to “Grenadiers, charge.” Charlot Lucien led the song and explained its weight in blunt terms: “It means they, or we, as Africans were kidnapped and enslaved.”
He added, “We have nothing to lose.” That line fit the mood in the bar, where the refrain carried a history that runs through the Haitian Revolution of the late 18th and early 19th century and still serves as a World Cup rallying cry for Les Grenadiers.
Pierrot In Melrose
Pierrot’s path made the celebration feel immediate. Haiti’s forward spent his formative years in Massachusetts and attended middle school and high school in Melrose, near the northern end of the Orange Line. For the Boston crowd, that connection bridged the national team and the city in a way a normal qualification party could not.
His presence also sharpened the contrast with Haiti’s long absence from the tournament. Haiti last qualified in 1974, played Italy that year, and left the competition without a point after being outscored 14 to 2.
Emmanuel “Manno” Sanon supplied Haiti’s lone goal in that 3-1 loss, scoring shortly after halftime after rounding Italian goalkeeper Dino Zoff. That remains the benchmark the diaspora remembers, and it is the reference point now for a team trying to turn one qualification into more than a one-off.
Haiti’s June 13 Match
The next concrete marker is June 13, when Haiti is set to play Scotland at Gillette Stadium. For Boston-area Haitians, that gives the celebration in Back Bay a direct local follow-up, with Pierrot’s background and Haiti’s return both carrying into a match on home turf for the region’s diaspora.
