Canadian men to face Switzerland, Qatar and possibly Italy at 2026 World Cup

Canada’s draw for next summer’s World Cup started well but finished with a twist of the tail.

The Canadian men, ranked 27th in the world, drew No. 17 Switzerland, the fifth-ranked team in Pot 2 and then No. 51 Qatar, the 10th-ranked side in Pot 3.

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But Pot 4 threw up a yet-to-be determined European team that could be Italy.

The 12th-ranked Italians are taking part in a European playoff in March along with No. 32 Wales, No. 69 Northern Ireland and No. 71 Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Italy-Northern Ireland winner will face the Wales-Bosnia victor to see who plays Canada in its June 12 opener at Toronto’s BMO Field.

The Canadians will then head west to Vancouver, where they will face Qatar on June 18 and then Switzerland on June 24. Both Vancouver games are at B.C. Place Stadium.

Canada beat the Swiss 3-1 in May 2002 in St. Gallen, Switzerland, in their only previous meeting. The Canadians blanked Qatar 2-0 in the lead-up to the 2022 World Cup, in Vienna in September 2022, in their only encounter.

Having a team like Italy in the group would ratchet up Canada’s degree of difficulty.

The top teams in each of the 12 groups plus the eight best third-place finishers move on to the knockout round.

Canada has an incentive to win its group. Should the Canadian men top the pool, they would stay in Vancouver for their round-of-32 game and, if they keep winning, for a round-of-16 matchup.

Should Canada finish runner-up, it would face the second-place team in Mexico’s Group A.

The full tournament schedule is slated for release Saturday.

The road map for the expanded 48-team tournament unfolded at the draw at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., before a star-studded crowd including Prime Minister Mark Carney, U.S. president Donald Trump and Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum, whose three countries are co-hosting the competition.

In a surprise move, all three leaders took the stage for the draw. But they were only there to draw their teams, which had already been assigned to specific groups.

Canada is hosting 13 of the tournament’s 104 games, with seven in Vancouver and six in Toronto.

“What an incredible opportunity this World Cup will provide our country,” Canada coach Jesse Marsch said in a statement. “We now know our group opponents and will spend every opportunity preparing for the matches ahead. It’s time for the nation to rally around our team, the People’s Team. Let’s go Canada.”

The Canadian men, in their third trip to the soccer showcase, will be looking for their first-ever win.

Canada, ranked 41st in the world at the time, was grouped with No. 2 Belgium, No. 12 Croatia and No. 22 Morocco at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The Canadians lost all three matches, outscored 7-2.

The Canadian men went 0-3-0 in their first tournament appearance in 1986 in Mexico, outscored 5-0 in losses to France, Hungary and the Soviet Union.

After the three politicians left the draw stage, Wayne Gretzky, Tom Brady, Shaquille O’Neal and Aaron Judge joined former England captain Rio Ferdinand in conducting the actual draw.

“Icons everywhere,” said Ferdinand.

The seven-foot-one O’Neal towered above the five-foot-five Hart.

There was politics as well as sport with FIFA president Gianni Infantino awarding Trump the inaugural “FIFA Peace Prize” for “exceptional and extraordinary actions to promote peace and unity around the world.” On stage, Trump donned the medal that went with the gold trophy.

“The world is a safer place now,” said Trump.

Trump also referenced his “tremendous working arrangement” with Canada.

Andrea Bocelli, Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger, Lauryn Hill and the Village People provided the musical entertainment.