Canada’s amazing World Cup moment like never seen in the tournament’s 96-year history!
Canada is in a really exciting spot at the World Cup, facing something that’s never happened in the tournament’s 96-year history.
Jesse Marsch’s team made it to the round of 32, even though they lost 2-1 to Switzerland in Vancouver. Ruben Vargas and Johan Manzambi scored for Switzerland, but Promise David scored for Canada in the 76th minute. Canada finished second in Group B, just ahead of Bosnia and Herzegovina thanks to a better goal difference.
This is the first time ever that Canada has reached the knockout stages of the World Cup after three tries. Since Canada is one of the three host countries, all their group games were played at home—first against Bosnia in Toronto, then against Qatar and Switzerland in Vancouver.
But because they lost to Switzerland, Canada will give up playing at home for the next round. They are set to play South Africa at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Sunday, which will be a historic match. It’s the first time a host country will play a World Cup game in another nation.
Canada will still host three more games, with Toronto and Vancouver holding round of 32 matches, and Vancouver also hosting a round of 16 game. Canada could’ve kept playing at home if they had topped their group, so this is a bit disappointing.
Coach Marsch said after the game, “It’s been amazing here, and that’s why it’s tough because we want to keep this great energy with our fans. But now we’re going to LA, and it’ll probably feel like an away game. It’ll be harder, but we want to excite the country and play our best. We’re exactly where we wanted—to be in the knockout stage—so let’s go for it!”
If Canada beats South Africa, their next game in the round of 16 will be in Houston, Texas on July 4th. The US and Mexico both won their groups, so their next matches will all be on home soil. The USA is hosting the most games—78 out of the 104 games—since this is the first World Cup with 48 teams.
That means if the US team keeps winning, they’ll play all their remaining matches at home.
Kristian Jack, who reports on the Canadian team for One Soccer, thinks Canada should have had a way to keep playing in Canada. He said, “There are other round of 32 games happening in Canada, so this situation could have been avoided. I’ve been talking to FIFA and Canada Soccer about this for a while.
“If you’re a host and have two round of 32 games, it could have been arranged for Canada to play in Toronto instead of Vancouver, so they could stay at home. Then we wouldn’t be talking about the mixed feelings of qualifying but losing home advantage.”
Looking ahead, the 2030 World Cup will be hosted by Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, and to celebrate the 100th World Cup anniversary, one game will also be held in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay.