What’s this World Cup I keep hearing about?
It’s the global festival of football that takes place every four years.
Football? I love football! Go Esks … sorry, I mean Go Elks!
Er, it’s not that kind of football. We’re talking about the game where you actually kick the ball with your foot. Not the game where you pick the ball up and run around a bit.
So when you say football you mean soccer. Stop being deliberately difficult.
OK, anyway, the World Cup is kicking off next month. It’s the world’s biggest sporting event and some of the action is taking place right here in Canada.
Right here?
Well, not right here. In Toronto and Vancouver.
Neither of those is anywhere near here.
Fair point. There are also games in cities in the United States and Mexico.
This is starting to sound familiar. Did Canada qualify?
As one of the host nations we get a free pass to the tournament, so Canada will be there without having to go through all the inconvenience of the qualifying rounds. Also in the mix are the usual big boys from the likes of Brazil, Argentina and Germany along with some places that aren’t traditional powerhouses like Haiti, Uzbekistan and England.
I see what you did there. What are our chances of winning?
The entire thing? Remote. But Canada did manage to get drawn in one of the easier groups for the round robin. We’ll be facing Bosnia and Herzegovina, Qatar and Switzerland during the group phase. Those are decent teams, especially the Swiss, but none of them are unbeatable. And if we make it to the knockout rounds, anything can happen. Although, to be honest it usually doesn’t.
Any particular players to watch out for?
Alphonso Davies is probably Canada’s brightest star. In his day job he’s a regular starter for Bayern Munich so officially counts as being Quite Good at Football. And he grew up in Edmonton! So far so good, but he stretched the bejesus out of his hamstring (this may not be the correct medical term) in a match against Paris Saint-Germain May 6 and is expected to be out of action for several weeks.
Oh dear. And when is Canada’s first World Cup match?
We face Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday June 12. So depending on your definition of “several weeks” Davies may or may not be able to play.
I can already feel the tension building. Any other drama to look out for?
Plenty. This will be the last World Cup for Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, both of whom are getting on a bit and will be very keen to go out with a bang. Scotland, Austria and Norway are back in the competition for the first time since 1998. We’ll see the World Cup debut of a number of nations including the likes of Curacao (population 180,000 and land area of 444 square kilometres) which is the smallest country ever to make it to the finals.
And Iran have qualified and have games in Los Angeles and Seattle.
You have captured my imagination with your insights. I can’t believe I used to say there was nothing interesting in the paper. I will purchase a large flag and a novelty inflatable maple leaf prior to June 12. Is there anything else I’ll need to get the most out of the tournament?
Patience. The first game kicks off June 11, but the final isn’t until July 19, 102 games later. That is a lot of football.
