'It’s a huge experience for these kids': Canada’s World Cup appearance entices younger fans to watch
Canada’s gut-wrenching loss to Morocco at the FIFA World Cup may have left a bitter taste for Canadian soccer fans on Thursday, but it also shined a light on the future of soccer in Canada.
Hoping to witness Canada claim its’ first-ever point at the Men’s World Cup, close to 300 students packed the gymnasium at St. Timothy Catholic Elementary School in Kitchener.
Kids from Kindergarten to Grade 7 we’re on-hand for the game, supporting a team that hadn’t qualified for the World Cup since long before they were born.
“When my dad was 11, that was the last time [Canada] made the World Cup,” Grade 4 student Tiago Martins told CTV News.
Martins has been playing soccer since the age of two. He says watching Canada play in Qatar drives him to reach the highest level.
“I’ve always wanted to be a professional,” Martins said.
Former St. Timothy student, David Edgar, has a long history of representing Canada on the world stage. The 35-year-old played for Canada during both 2010 and 2014 World Cup qualifying.
The long-time pro joined Thursday’s watch party at St. Timothy and hosted a Q&A with the students during halftime.
“I think it’s a huge experience for these kids to grow up and wear that maple leaf with pride,” Edgar said.
Edgar has noticed more kids are interested in soccer than when he was their age. He adds that the fanbase will continue to grow if the national program keeps improving.
“People ask why there were no Canadian fans. It’s because we weren’t that successful. Now the team’s successful and the fans will come because the fans have always been here,” Edgar said.
St. Timothy’s faculty has seen the fanbase grow first-hand. School teacher Justin Carvalho said the passion for soccer has been there all along.
“[The students] have been asking ‘what’s the score, can we watch a little bit of the game?’ There was already such an energy and enthusiasm,” Carvalho said.
Canada will return to the World Cup in 2026 as a host country.
Looking at the future of the national program, Edgar said it’s not just about four years from now, but 40 years.
“What’s the longevity of the program? Where are we going next with it?” Edgar asked. “You’ve got kids here in this gym that hopefully can look and be the next Alphonso Davies.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.