Number of past World Cup appearances: 2
Best Performance: Group Stage (1986, 2022)
First appearance: 1986 (Mexico)
Top scorer: Alphonso Davies (1)
Player to watch: Alphonso Davies
FIFA World Ranking: 30th
Soccer participation overtook ice hockey in Canada in the 1990s, but it took time for passion to turn into respect for the national team.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
The Canadians can measure their progress by the fact that they have frequently outscored the Americans recently and have gone 4W-2L-3D in their last nine games. That’s after they went 34 years (1985-2019) without a win over their closest rivals.
They are currently competing in back-to-back World Cups, winning the regional qualifying tournament ahead of 2026 co-hosts Mexico and the United States to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The national team has players from Vancouver to Nova Scotia. From first- and second-generation urban immigrant communities – French-speaking Montreal. Toronto is home to Africans, Caribbeans, Mexicans and South Americans, and the province of Alberta, home to fullback Alphonso Davies, is also a hockey hotspot.
Born in Ghana’s Buduburam refugee camp, Davis immigrated to Canada at the age of five and grew up in cold Edmonton.
Davis, now 25, is the Canucks’ captain and the most skilled player in the country. He played as a forward in his youth, and switched to left-back after joining Bayern Munich from Vancouver Whitecaps in 2019.
Davies, who is recovering from knee surgery last season, suffered a hamstring injury in Bayern Munich’s Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain and is doubtful for Canada’s opening game against Bosnia and Herzegovina on June 12 in Toronto.
skilled coach
The Maple Leafs are counting on American coach Jesse Marsh, 52, who recently signed a contract extension through 2030. Mr. Marsh comes from a lineage of some of the most respected coaches in the United States, having played under Bruce Arena and Bob Bradley, and began his coaching career as Bradley’s assistant with the United States at the 2010 World Cup.
Marsh’s club career has spanned five countries: Austria, Canada, England, Germany and the United States, and he has won titles in both countries, a major accomplishment for an American manager.
Along the way, he joined the Red Bull ‘family’, coaching the likes of Erling Haaland at Salzburg and assisting Ralf Rangnick at RB Leipzig before becoming manager.
In England, Marsh kept Leeds United in the Premier League for the 2021-22 season, but was sacked as the team finished 14th in February 2023. He took a year off, settled his family in Tuscany, Italy, and traveled the world, often backpacking. He returns to coaching, replacing John Herdman, who led Canada to the 2022 World Cup.
Marsh, who has a 13-5-11 record with Canada since his first game as manager on June 6, 2024, has been working on changes to the national team program’s scheduling philosophy. Former Real Madrid coach Benito Floro, who led the Canadian national team from 2013 to 2016, has set out a policy of inflating his record and establishing himself in the FIFA rankings by avoiding difficult opponents. Manager Marsh thought the team needed a tough test ahead of the World Cup, so he did the opposite.
In Marsh’s first five weeks as head coach, Canada lost 4-0 to the Netherlands, tied 0-0 with France, lost twice to Argentina 2-0 (the first time being the first game), and lost in the Copa America semifinals.
Canada recovered, suffering only two losses (against Mexico and Australia) from July 10, 2024 to May 30, 2024.
A cautionary tale from Qatar
In two World Cup campaigns (1986 and 2022), Canada lost every game despite being in difficult groups in both competitions. This time, the opponents in Group B consist of Bosnia, Qatar and Switzerland.
Canada will need to improve its defense if it is to reach the finals, but that may not happen unless Moise Bonvito recovers from knee surgery.
Marsh, who played as a defensive midfielder at Princeton and in Major League Soccer, will be paired with two holding midfielders in Steven Eustaquio and Ismael Cohn. The plan is to threaten the wings through Tajon Buchanan on the right and either Ali Ahmed or Jacob Schaffelburg on the left, with Davies pushing up from left-back.
The score could be deceptive as coach Marsh encourages an attacking style. Canada recently drew 0-0 with World Cup participants Colombia, Ecuador and Tunisia. To get the attack back on track, they will need to free up striker Jonathan David, who will be paired with Cyle Larin or Thani Oluwaseyi.
Marsh had to gamble on player availability. When announcing the squad on Friday, Coach Marsh said: “Will we all be able to give 100 percent for the game against Bosnia? No, we won’t. (But) we believe we can get stronger as the tournament progresses.”
In addition to Davies, several other players are recovering from injuries, including defenders Bonvito, Alistair Johnstone (hamstring), Alfie Jones (ankle), Luc de Fougerolles (injury not disclosed), Richie Larrier (hamstring) and forward Promise David (hip).
For Canada, the experience in Qatar may be alarming. Because even though the team lost 0-1, they gave Belgium a try before everything went downhill.
Coach Herdman’s attempt to motivate his team for the next game became bulletin board fodder by telling his team, “We’re going to Croatia,” and although Davis scored Canada’s first World Cup goal, Croatia won 4-1. Canada lost 2-1 to Morocco due to an own goal from Sam Adekube’s cross.
Raised in Wisconsin and educated in Princeton, Marsh is known for his brashness and spontaneity. He’s unlikely to dampen his enthusiasm, and winning at least one game to put the Canadians on track to advance to the first round would be a big step forward.
As Marsh said, the possibilities are hidden. This is “one of the best teams, if not the best, Canada has ever assembled.”
canada group stage matches
⚽ June 12: Canada vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina (Toronto, Canada), 3:00 PM ET (19:00 GMT)
⚽ June 18: Canada vs. Qatar (Vancouver, Canada), 6:00 PM ET (10:00 JST)
⚽ June 24: Switzerland vs. Canada (Vancouver, Canada), 3:00 PM ET (19:00 GMT)
canada world cup team
Goalkeepers: Dane St. Clair (Inter Miami), Maxime Crepeau (Orlando City), Owen Goodman (Crystal Palace)
Defenders: Alistair Johnston (Celtic), Derek Cornelius (Marseille), Richie Larrier (Toronto FC), Nico Sigur (Hajduk Split), Joel Waterman (Chicago Fire), Luc de Fougerolles (Fulham), Moise Bonvito (Nice), Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich), Alfie Jones (Middlesbrough)
Midfielders: Stephane Eustaquio (Porto), Ismael Kone (Sassuolo), Tajon Buchanan (Villarreal), Mathieu Choiniere (Los Angeles FC), Ali Ahmed (Norwich City), Nathan Saliba (Anderlecht), Liam Miller (Hull City), Marcelo Flores (Tigres UANL), Jakob Schaffelburg (Toronto FC), Jonathan Osorio (Toronto FC)
Forwards: Jonathan David (Juventus), Cyle Larin (Southampton), Tani Oluwaseyi (Villarreal), Promise David (Union SG)
