Penton: Canada welcomes the World Cup hoopla
By Bruce Penton
Canadian sports fans — no, Canadians, period — will have a tough time avoiding news and hoopla about the World Cup, which kicks off June 12 in Toronto. Just don't call it soccer — it's ‘football’ everywhere in the world.
It is the world’s biggest sporting event by far, bigger than the Super Bowl, bigger than the Olympic Games, far bigger and more important than regional events such as the Stanley Cup playoffs or World Series.
Organized and run by FIFA — Fédération Internationale de Football Association — the World Cup features 48 teams split into 12 seeded groups of four. After round-robin play, the top two teams from each group, plus the eight best third-place teams, advance to the 32-team knockout stage.
Played in stadiums in Canada, Mexico and the United States, the 2026 version of the tournament is the first to be spread over three countries. Canada gets 13 games, seven in Vancouver and six in Toronto. The tournament will run over a five-week period, culminating with the championship game at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on July 19.
Here’s a going-out-on-a-limb prediction: Canada will not win the World Cup. But, based on the current world rankings, it could advance to the 32-team knockout stage by finishing in the top two in its group, which features Switzerland, Qatar and Bosnia Herzegovina. The Swiss team is ranked 19th in the world; Canada 30th; Qatar 55th, and Bosnia Herzegovina 65th.
Canadian coach Jesse Marsch is a native of Wisconsin who recently signed an extension which takes him through the next World Cup, in 2030, to be held in football hotbeds Morocco, Portugal and Spain. Marsch played 14 seasons in Major League Soccer and is held in high regard by Canada's soccer hierarchy. He guided the Canadian entry — its roster features players from club teams all around the world — to as high a world ranking as 26th in 2025 and he steered the Canadian team to a surprising semi-final berth in the 2024 Copa America tournament.
Marsch may be American, but he loves everything about Canada. Said Sportsillustrated.com in a recent Marsch feature: “He’s defended the nation’s sovereignty, snapping at comments from President Trump about annexing Canada to make it the 51st U.S. state, and has spent ample time touring the country’s youth programs, seeking to raise the level of grassroots soccer.”
In Canada, Marsch said, “I’ve found a place that embodies for me the ideals and morals of what not just football and a team is, but what life is, and that’s integrity, respect and the belief that good people can do great things together.”
Canada has a few world-class superstars — fullback Alphonso Davies of Edmonton and forwards Cyle Larin and Jonathan David to name three— but the roster consists of mostly Canadian-born players who wouldn’t necessarily be classified as ‘star’ material. The usual powers — Brazil, Germany, France, England — are likely to dominate the tournament, but Canada’s football stock is definitely on the rise.
Super 70s Sports: “Military experts have confirmed that Chuck Norris and Walter Payton together on the same boat was temporarily the world’s fourth-strongest navy.”
Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel: “Aaron Rodgers has announced that he will retire after the upcoming NFL season. Hey, I guess it’s time to sell your ayahuasca stock.”
Headline at the onion.com: “Tiger Woods Completes 12-Step AA Program In 9”
Vancouver comedy guy Torben Rolfsen: “I took a deep dive into Jeff Hoffman's advanced stats and discovered something: He can’t get batters out.”
Cathal Kelly of the Globe and Mail, on how desperately Canada will need the injured Alphonso Davies to play against Qatar if it loses its opening game: “If Canada loses, Davies will appear in the next game on crutches, trying to head the ball the length of the field.”
Torben Rolfsen again: “Real grass is being installed in B.C. Place ahead of the World Cup. It will be the first time real grass has been in the stadium since the Snoop Dogg concert a year ago.”
Greg Cote of the Miami Herald: “… Hearing lots of fan and media noise about (World Cup) tickets being pricey. Like that's a surprise!? Demand steers cost. It's the American way!”
fark.com headline: “The next time you fell like you want to complain about your sore, aching body, just remember Rafael Nadal won 22 Grand Slams over 20 years on a busted foot and never complained about it.”
Another fark.com headline: “Jets say they're finding inspiration in the Knicks’ NBA Finals run, which is a weird way to tell everyone they need another 27 years to rebuild.”
Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun: “The International Ice Hockey Federation is waffling on what to do about Russia for future international events, while the war in Ukraine continues. But really, it’s simple. Just say no.”
Care to comment? Email brucepenton2003@yahoo.ca