Men’s national soccer team to train in Halifax during first-ever visit

Canada’s men’s soccer team will be training in Halifax for the first time ever.

Canada Soccer Men’s National Team is coming to Halifax for the first time.

Canada Soccer, in partnership with the Halifax Wanderers, announced the team will begin its June Friendly window in Halifax. CANMNT will train for multiple days at the Wanderers Grounds.

“I was in Halifax in January and I had been told what a great city it is, and even though it was January, we stayed down by the water and you could see how beautiful it is, and you could imagine on a summer day that it would be just amazing,” said CANMNT Head Coach Jesse Marsch.

“I heard two things when I was in Halifax. The first was, ‘We love Jacob Shaffelburg,’ and the second was, ‘When is the national team coming to Halifax?’ So, we figured out that we had a little time here in June in preparation for our June friendlies.”

A “friendly window” is a period when FIFA allows national teams to schedule friendly matches, meaning players are released from their club duties for a shorter period than official matches.

“We had a very positive experience in Montréal with an open training session last year, and I’m glad we can do it again with our first-ever official visit to Halifax. The country deserves to see this team ahead of our upcoming home FIFA World Cup.” ​

“We know that next summer is going to be really important and we’re going to need full support of the entire Canadian nation.”

The FIFA World Cup takes place in 2026 and will be co-hosted by Canada, the United States and Mexico, with Canadian games taking place in Toronto and Vancouver.

While CANMNT is in Halifax, fans will be able to watch them during an open training session at the Wanderers Grounds on Tuesday, June 3.

“I think it’s a real wonderful opportunity and a testament to the hard work that’s been put in by many people over the last number of years to really transform Halifax into what I would consider one of the soccer hotbeds of the country now,” said Halifax Wanderers Founder and President Derek Martin.

“From a personal perspective, this is the realization of one of my dreams when building the stadium at the Wanderers Grounds eight years ago. We’re proud to be a part of helping to bring the team to Nova Scotia.”

This will be the second time a national team visits Halifax. Previously, Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team played against Brazil in 2023.

Soccer Nova Scotia (SNS) said opportunities like this show young athletes their dreams can come true.

“Kids will definitely rally behind Jacob and the men’s national team, and one day, maybe that will be their reality, and that’s what we hope. That the kids will leave inspired and ready to train and make it to that next level,” said SNS Executive Director Lindsay MacAskill.

“It goes without saying that Halifax and Nova Scotia are on the map. We’re here. Let’s bring more events here to the Wanderers Grounds and potentially a stadium here one day.”

After CANMNT wraps up its training in Halifax, the team will play in the newly-created Canadian Shield tournament in Toronto with games against Ukraine and Côte d’Ivoire.

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