‘Up until it happens, it won’t feel real’: Mississauga’s Tani Oluwaseyi on playing for Canada at home during FIFA World Cup 2026

Canada striker Tani Oluwaseyi (25) during the second half of a Copa America Group A soccer match against Chile, Saturday, June 29, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

There’s snow on the ground in Toronto, which Tani Oluwaseyi admits is “extremely different” from his usual stomping grounds in Spain, where he plays professional soccer for Villarreal CF.

“The weather is definitely a lot colder,” he told CTV’s Your Morning’s Anne-Marie Mediwake on Monday. “I more or less forgot about snow up until yesterday. So, I’m having to get reaccustomed to that,” the 25-year-old forward said with a laugh.

The Canada men’s national team forward is used to it though, having grown up in Mississauga after emigrating from Nigeria at the age of 10.

He’s in town for an international friendly at BMO Field in Toronto, where Canada will take on Ecuador in likely single-digit temperatures later this week. The matchup will serve as a warmup of sorts, seven-and-a-half months before Canada co-hosts the world’s biggest sporting event.

“To be honest, I think up until it happens, it won’t feel real,” he said of Canada’s first match of the FIFA World Cup on June 12.

“It feels like it’s not happening until it does and I think that will be kind of the case with the World Cup. Like until we’re hearing the anthem at BMO (Field) in June, it’s not going to feel real. But I’m really excited for it.”

The city is hosting six games at BMO Field in what will be rebranded “Toronto Stadium” for the tournament. Toronto will split its national hosting duties with Vancouver, while the lion’s share of the games will be played in the U.S. and Mexico.

Thursday’s friendly will be the last time Oluwaseyi plays in Canada before the World Cup begins in June, and he said he’s been savouring the rare cadence in which he’s been able to see his teammates this year.

“We’ve gotten together a lot more than we usually would have around this time of year,” he said, referring to the national team’s training camps in September and October. “I think as a team we get along really well. We love being around each other. So it’s always really nice whenever we get to see each other.

“For us it’s just a matter of 1. Enjoying the camp and 2. Remembering that in a couple months we’re playing int a World Cup. So it’s quite the balancing act but I think because we enjoy together so much it’s always really easy.”

Canada will automatically play in the World Cup group stage as a host country. It’s yet to be revealed who they will play on June 12.