Canada Soccer executives hit the road to drum up support for World Cup bid

Rudi Schuller

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Canada Soccer executives hit the road to drum up support for World Cup bid image

Canada may not be gearing up for action at next month's FIFA World Cup, but officials from the Canadian Soccer Association still spent the weekend on the job.

With the FIFA Congress just over two weeks away, Canada Soccer president Steven Reed was accompanied on a whirlwind tour of Europe by officials from his country as well as those from the U.S. and Mexico as the North American nations work to ramp up support for their combined bid for the 2026 World Cup.

Reed, along with Canada Soccer director Peter Montopoli, was joined by Reed's predecessor and current CONCACAF president and FIFA VP Victor Montagliani, with the trio meeting officials from several countries in the lead-up to Saturday's UEFA Champions League final. The match between Real Madrid and Liverpool provided the ideal setting for even further discussions, as the Canadians looked to make as many positive connections at one of the sport's biggest annual fixtures. 

"That's the good thing about it. Once the game kicks off, everybody watches," Montagliani told reporters ahead of Madrid's 3-1 victory Saturday. "Football is football and everybody here is a football person. Once the whistle blows, everybody's going to be focusing on the pitch. So we'll get to enjoy the game.

"But in between that, there's a lot of sort of shaking hands and taking about the bid. We'll be doing that right up until June 13."

Far from a casual meet-and-great weekend, representatives from the United 2026 bid met with officials from Latvia, Albania and other countries in the days leading up to the Champions League final, with Reed even managing some face time with veteran Canadian international Atiba Hutchinson in Turkey.

North American officials held discussions with the Turkish Football Federation earlier in the month, as canvassing for votes hit the home stretch.

Morocco is the only other country bidding for the 2026 World Cup, with the African nation providing a stern challenge to the North American effort. FIFA is set to expand the 2026 tournament to 48 countries, an increase of 16 teams over the current format.

Rudi Schuller