Canada Soccer Community Update: Building on the World Cup

The FIFA World Cup has come to an end, but its impact on soccer in Canada is only beginning.

For several unforgettable weeks, Canadians came together behind our Men's National Team as it achieved things that no Canadian men’s team had ever accomplished before. People gathered in homes, workplaces, restaurants, public squares and fan festivals across our country. Canada jerseys became a common sight in communities. Children gained new role models. The Prime Minister cheered. And millions of people across Canada embraced our players as they represented the character of our country to the entire world. ​

Those special moments mattered. But history has shown that moments alone are not enough. Lasting growth for our sport happens when inspiration is matched with investment, planning, and collective action.

That is the responsibility we all share now.

Turning Inspiration into Progress

Soccer is Canada's leading youth participation sport, with approximately 50% of Canadian children playing our game. A recent national Abacus Data poll showed that soccer is now the most popular sport for Canadians aged 18 to 29 and the second most followed sport by all Canadians. Overall, 30.5 million unique Canadian viewers (75% of Canada’s population) watched live FIFA World Cup tournament coverage. And the compelling performance of the Men's National Team reinforced our sport’s heightened importance within Canada's most established institutions. ​

Even with this overwhelming momentum, some have suggested that Canada's embrace of soccer is fleeting. But the evidence suggests the opposite. The World Cup did not create Canada's soccer culture—it revealed and accelerated it. Soccer is becoming the defining sport of modern Canada.

Accordingly, while this World Cup was historic, our focus at Canada Soccer is to help ensure that soccer in Canada becomes even stronger after it. ​

One of our highest priorities is delivering a National Training Centre that will become the permanent home of Canada Soccer and a centre of excellence for generations of players, coaches and referees. The Request For Proposals (RFP) process is ongoing with submissions due by the end of July. We will have further updates on the progress of this project in the fall. ​

At the same time, we will continue to advocate for broader investment in soccer infrastructure across the country. Canada simply needs additional fields, more indoor facilities, more small stadiums, and modern training environments that can support both grassroots participation and high-performance development. ​

We are also supporting community clubs through Club+ - a platform which provides practical tools and resources to help clubs convert the increased interest generated by the World Cup into long-term registrations. Examples of other future-facing priorities include broadening the coaching pool through programs such as Telus She Can Coach and AccelerateHer, and continuing to strengthen our Youth National Team structure and player pathway.

These investments are all different in nature, but they all serve the same purpose: ensuring that today's excitement becomes tomorrow's participation, tomorrow's development, and tomorrow's success.

A National Effort

Canada Soccer has an important role to play, but the progress we all seek cannot be accomplished by one organization. The future of soccer in Canada depends on the collective effort of our community. ​

If you encountered new soccer fans during the World Cup, help them continue the journey. Encourage them to attend a Canadian Premier League match, a Northern Super League match, an MLS match, a Canadian Championship fixture, or a National Team game. ​

If you are part of the business community, consider investing in Canada's fastest growing and most globally connected sport. Soccer reaches every demographic, reflects what Canada is today, and offers opportunities to build meaningful relationships with communities across the country.

If you are a government leader, continue investing in community facilities and public infrastructure. Every new field, indoor facility and community stadium creates opportunities for children to play, families to gather, and communities to grow stronger together.

If you believe in the future of Canadian soccer, consider supporting the Canada Soccer Foundation. Whether a contribution is large or small, every gift helps create opportunities for more players, coaches and communities while supporting the long-term development of our National Teams.

If you are a member of the media, thank you for helping more Canadians discover the Men’s National Team during the World Cup. We hope you will similarly cover the Women’s National Team during their upcoming Women’s World Cup campaign, and continue telling the stories of our players, our coaches, our domestic professional leagues, our clubs and the people growing the game every day across this country.

And if you have been part of the soccer community for years as a volunteer, coach, referee, administrator or supporter continue doing what so many of you did during the World Cup: welcome new fans. Help make the sport approachable. Explain the traditions, celebrate the rivalries, answer the questions and invite others to be part of the experience. Every lifelong supporter starts somewhere.

Soccer for Nation Building

The World Cup reminded us of the power of sport, and particularly how soccer can be a catalyst for nation building. Canadians from every province and territory, every background and every generation came together behind one team. We celebrated together. We believed together. We shared moments that will remain part of our country's sporting history forever. ​

And uniquely, since soccer is by far the world’s most followed sport, our Men’s National Team helped the entire world learn more about the great characteristics that define Canada and how it shows itself to the rest of the world. This sense of nation-building must not disappear with the final whistle. ​

So, our challenge to the Canadian soccer community coming out of this World Cup is to push forward our collective building effort by taking one action. Buy a ticket. Bring someone to a match. Register a child. Volunteer with a club. Coach, referee, donate, sponsor, share a story, support a local team, or advocate for a new place to play. ​

Soccer in our country has changed from this World Cup. The future of soccer in Canada has never been brighter. How much progress is made will depend on Canadians choosing to take steps forward together. If each of us does our part, this World Cup moment will become a lasting national legacy. ​

Sincerely, ​