With the FIFA World Cup now just a few weeks away, Canadians are increasingly turning their attention to what this moment could mean – not only for soccer, but also for its impact on sport more broadly in Canada.
Our sport system is wrestling with important questions in follow up to the Future of Sport Commission’s final report: How do we prepare our athletes to compete with the world’s best? How do we build a sport system that is properly funded, athlete-centred and safe, and professionally managed? How do we improve sport infrastructure?
From a soccer perspective, these questions now intersect with the unprecedented spotlight and opportunity of a home co-hosted World Cup. As leaders entrusted with helping guide Canadian soccer through this historic moment, we are acutely aware of our responsibility to ensure the World Cup has a transformational impact – not only for Canadian soccer, but also in a way that aligns with and exemplifies the broader progress sought across the Canadian sport system.
That is why last week’s supportive announcements by the Government of Canada matter so deeply. The federal government’s decision to make the largest new investment in Canada’s sport system in decades sends an unmistakable message: sport matters. It matters to our communities. It matters to our economy. It matters to the health and identity of our country. And it matters to the next generation of Canadians - from every socio-economic background - who dream of representing this country on the world stage.
The federal government’s commitment of $9.8 million toward the planning, design, and pre-construction phases of the Canada Soccer National Training Centre also represents a tangible commitment to sport infrastructure improvement. Through the Build Communities Strong Fund, Canada has signaled that world-class sport infrastructure – for soccer, in our case – deserves serious national attention.
We are deeply grateful for these investments and what they mean for our athletes, our communities, and our country. We would like to sincerely thank Prime Minister Mark Carney, Secretary of State for Sport Adam van Koeverden, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Gregor Robertson, and the many public servants and elected leaders who are making these federal investments possible. We would also like to acknowledge the determined work of the Canadian Olympic Committee – led by CEO David Shoemaker and Board Chair Tricia Smith – and the many leaders across Canada’s sport system who have advocated tirelessly for renewed national investment.
Importantly, we were very encouraged to hear Secretary Van Koeverden speak candidly last week about the importance of National Sport Organizations building stronger, more diversified business models that welcome philanthropy and invite the private sector to help fuel ambition. We agree wholeheartedly and commend Adam for his forward-looking leadership. Government support—while essential—cannot, on its own, build a world-leading sport system. Public funding is the foundation, not the finish line. In a world of rising costs, growing competitive demands, and increasingly complex athlete development pathways, the organizations that will thrive are those that pair public trust with private-sector excellence and discipline. Organizations must create commercial value, inspire generosity, and build enduring assets – not simply annual budgets.
That is the future we are building at Canada Soccer – one where Canada’s most played sport is led with ambition, capacity, purpose, and performance. In recent years, we have strengthened commercial partnerships, ratified a collective bargaining agreement with our national team players that aligns incentives and unlocks joint commercial growth, and deepened a culture of giving through the Canada Soccer Foundation. Through Canada Rising, our $25M campaign to help power the next era of Canadian soccer, we have already surpassed $17M toward our goal. Canada Soccer is working to exemplify what is possible for a modernized National Sport Organization.
The government’s investments last week are significant, and they deserve to be celebrated. They should also be a challenge to all sport leaders, business leaders, philanthropists, and Canadians to widen the horizon of what we believe is possible. Public investment can spark momentum. Private leadership can scale it. Philanthropy can turn it into legacy. That is how world-class sport systems are built. And with the world coming to Canada this summer, the moment to convert attention into progress is now.
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