Canada’s 2026 FIFA World Cup men’s team has already made history, and a former national team member believes it’s just the spark the country’s program needed. David Edgar grew up in Kitchener, Ont. and played for Newcastle United in the Premier League before later joining the Canadian national team from 2011 until 2018. As this year’s team prepares for the round of 16, Edgar says it is a defining moment in the nation’s history. “All those times we hopped on those planes and we flew all across the world to play for Canada when nobody was watching. This is why we did it. This is why the players did it and the alumni that came before me,” Edgar said. Watch parties have been held across the country and 11.8 million viewers tuned in for Canada’s first-ever knockout stage win over South Africa. “Even just the buildup to it, seeing people with jerseys and things like that, this didn’t exist when I played for the national team,” Edgar said. “People weren’t buying national team jerseys. They weren’t going to the games. They weren’t watching on TV. It just wasn’t happening.” Support for the national team was not hard to find on Sunday as a large crowd gathered in Cambridge’s Gaslight District. “Being able to celebrate with everybody here is something that you will never forget,” Sebastian Llana, a soccer fan, told CTV News. The crowd erupted in cheers as Stephen Eustáquio scored the stoppage-time winner. “I jumped out of my seat so fast. It was an unreal moment. Definitely something I won’t forget,” Holly Pellegrino, a soccer fan said. “Back ten years ago, maybe not that many fans,” Saeed Khalil, another soccer fan, said. “The rise of the Canadian national team – a lot of people have come out, and it just shows unity within the community.” Eustáquio’s goal will doubtlessly be fondly remembered for years to come. “Kids remember moments at World Cups, right? And why they play football. They’re going to remember the Eustáquio volley for years to come,” Edgar said. “I think that you’ll see a massive spike in participation, even though [soccer is] probably the number one participatory sport, you’re going to see a spike in it, just like we did with baseball last year and the Blue Jays.” Edgar coaches locally and offer development programs to help others cultivate their skills. He looked back at the impact the 1994 World Cup, hosted by the United States, had on the growth of the game in North America. “I think this is our sort of USA ’94. This has to be. We’ve got the [Canadian Premier League] in place, which we needed,” he said. “You need your own domestic leagues. So, we’ve got that. We’ve got a pathway for teams and we’ve got a successful national team. This isn’t just, ‘You’re hosting and you’re there to make up the numbers.’ We’re there to go and to really put ourselves on the map in world football.” Preparing for Morocco The team’s next challenge is coming up on Saturday; they will be facing Morocco in Houston. Edgar, who has been doing some co-commentary with the BBC during the tournament, said he will be glued to the game. “Some new, call them new Canadian soccer fans, aren’t going to know how good Morocco is. Actually how good they are, and how long they’ve been doing this national program for, and building their national program while we’re in the infancy of ours. So, I think patience with that. But we’ve come a long, long way. But also, dare to dream as well, right? Anything can happen. This is tournament football,” Edgar said. The game gets underway at 1 p.m.
