Canada’s World Cup lens varies, depending on the lens you choose to observe it with.
If someone had told me when I was a kid that Canada would host a World Cup and then go on to reach the round of sixteen, I do not quite know how I would have reacted. Lifelong football fans around the nation may be the only ones that really understand the gravity of the past two months.
One way I like to look at it is that although Canada may not have won at the football, football in Canada has definitely won. Fields are packed, jerseys are being worn, and games are being watched. This sport will only continue to grow and become a big part of this nation’s future.
Canada’s internal leagues continue to grow and shine as we see the CPL and NSL flourish. CPL teams have continued to perform against MLS clubs in the Canadian Championship, and the NSL continues to add quality players and grow itself.
The real question still stands: how will the national team continue to progress? Players like Promise David and Tani Oluwaseyi have only come to light in recent years, so it begs the question: what will it be like at the next World Cup? Will the fact that Canada isn’t hosting change the football landscape? What will the Canadian team look like in four years’ time? Will Canadians still care when it’s not on home soil? Only time will tell, and we’ll have to wait until then.
For now, focusing on the positives is of the utmost importance. For people who have watched the game before, the World Cup has fulfilled childhood dreams and shown why so many of us grew up following the sport. For people who watched for the first time, it created a bond and memories that will only strengthen and grow. But for everyone, they now know the true strength of football and how it can connect and bring people together. That is what matters, and that is what continues to grow the beautiful game.
HOME 