Canada at 2022 FIFA World Cup

Canadian Squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup

The Canada Soccer Men’s National Team for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2002 was led by head coach John Herdman. The supporting staff included assistant coaches Mauro Biello, Jason DeVos and Eric Tenllado; goalkeeper coach Simon Eaddy; fitness coaches Dr. Cesar Meylan and Yannick Girard; performance analysts Terry Dunfield, Shane Lammie and Joe Hamilton; and scout Alex Dodgshon.

The roster comprised 26 players, half of whom were 25 years old or younger. Two key players heading into the tournament were 22-year-old striker Jonathan David, a player with Lille OSC in France, and 22-year-old winger Alphonso Davies of FC Bayern München in Germany. David was the Canada Soccer Player of the Year in 2019 and already ranked among the top five all-time international goalscorers for Canada. Davies was the Canada Soccer Player of the Year in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022, and won 13 club titles in five seasons with FC Bayern Munich.

Players and Positions

Road to Qatar

Canada Soccer Men’s National Team had a historic qualification process on their road to Qatar. They were the “kings of CONCACAF,” finishing first in the CONCACAF Final Round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers from March 2021 to March 2022. This was only the third time that the men’s national team won a CONCACAF title (after 1985 and 2000). The team had a solid 20-match run that qualified them for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 36 years. They posted 14 wins, four draws and just two losses over three rounds. They were the first CONCACAF nation to qualify for Qatar, doing so with a 4–0 home win against Jamaica in Toronto on 27 March 2022.

Canada set numerous team and individual records during the qualifying campaign, including a CONCACAF record for the longest undefeated streak (17 games) in a FIFA World Cup Qualifiers campaign. They also set their own men’s national team records for consecutive wins (eight) and the longest home undefeated streak (14).

Team Canada set records with their performance, scoring a Men’s National Team record of 54 goals across the cycle. Cyle Larin set the Canadian record for goals (13), Alphonso Davies set the Canadian record for assists (eight) and Milan Borjan set the Canadian record for clean sheets (nine). Larin (13) and Jonathan David (nine) were the top two goalscorers across all CONCACAF nations in the 2021–22 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.

During the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, at home, Canada posted their first win since 1997 against Costa Rica, their first win since 1976 against Mexico and their first win since 1980 against the United States. On the road, Canada earned their first point since 1980 against Mexico at Estadio Azteca, their first away win since 1985 in Haiti, their first away win since 1985 against Honduras and their first away win since 1986 against El Salvador.

2022 FIFA World Cup Group F

The matches from Group F of the 2022 FIFA World Cup took place from 23 November to 1 December 2022. The group featured Canada, Belgium, Morocco and Croatia. Each team faced each other once, and the top two teams advanced out of the group stages and into the Round of 16.

Canada vs. Belgium

Canada had an energetic return to the FIFA World Cup despite losing 1–0 to Belgium in their opening group match. The game featured an entertaining and exciting attack from Canada in front of 40,432 fans at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium. Belgium’s star goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, stopped an Alphonso Davies penalty attempt in the tenth minute before Michy Batshuayi scored the lone goal for Belgium late in the first half. Defender Kamal Miller was Canada’s Player of the Match after an all-star performance in which he blocked several key Belgium attacks.

Canada vs. Croatia

Canada scored a historic first goal at the FIFA World Cup but was ultimately eliminated after a 4–1 loss to Croatia in Al Rayyan, Qatar. Alphonso Davies scored just 67 seconds in, but goals from Andrej Kramarić (twice), Marko Livaja and Lovro Majer sealed the victory for Croatia. Despite the loss, Canada put in a strong effort. Captain Atiba Hutchinson made his hundredth international "A" appearance in the match, becoming the first men's national team player to reach the milestone.

Canada vs. Morocco

In their final match of Group F play, Canada lost 2–1 to Morocco, the surprising winners of Group F. Canada’s lone goal was actually a Morocco own goal that was credited to Samuel Adekugbe.

Despite the loss, Canada's relatively young squad had a historic 23-match journey through the tournament and qualifying rounds, which included the first men's FIFA World Cup goal for Alphonso Davies. Head Coach John Herdman praised the team and said, “We were fearless in all three games; we came to show we compete, and our players have been seen. Our performance is something to celebrate because we're a young team, and we know people around the world are looking at us now.”

Controversies

Canada’s Men’s National Soccer Team caused a controversy when it was revealed that they would not be getting new kits (uniforms) for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Even though Nike was the kit supplier for Canada, and other teams got new bespoke designs, Canada’s kits remained the same template-based design that debuted in a June 2021 World Cup Qualifying match against Aruba.

Reasons for this include the rapid ascent of Canada’s Men’s Team and the process of Nike designing and creating a new kit, which can take approximately 18 months. Some national team players were unhappy with the decision, but Canada Soccer General Secretary Earl Cochrane stated that the team’s kit development cycle simply differed from other nations.

In the aftermath of Canada’s 1–0 loss to Belgium during World Cup play, Canada’s coach John Herdman made controversial comments in an official postgame pitchside interview. He said he told his players that they belong here and that now they’re going to go and “eff Croatia.” The comments were seen as disrespectful by the Croatian team and people. Herdman later clarified that he meant no disrespect and that it was an impassioned moment to inspire his team. He complimented the Croatian team’s midfield as the best in the world and praised their star player, Luka Modric. After Croatia handily defeated Canada 4–1, Croatian forward Andrej Kramarić told a reporter, “I’d like to thank the Canada manager for motivation. In the end, Croatia showed who ‘effed’ who.”

See also Canada at the 1986 World Cup; 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup; Canada at the 2020 Olympic Summer Games.