“Glorious sunshine, beautiful sight lines”: How fans enjoyed Canada’s first home World Cup match
Delirious soccer heads packed an explosive Toronto Stadium to witness history
Last Friday afternoon, nearly 45,000 footy fans descended on Toronto Stadium for Canada’s first-ever World Cup match on home soil, facing off against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bramptonian Rav Banayat never thought he’d see the day.
A Team Canada diehard, Banayat was thrilled to see the nation’s soccer program reach new heights after decades of disappointment. But watching his beloved club play a World Cup match at home, in person, on a sunny June day? “It’s surreal,” Banayat says. “I didn’t think in a million years I’d be here right now, enjoying this moment. I’m just taking it all in.”
“We have a lot of great players from Brampton playing,” Banayat adds. “I felt like I had to be here.”
And Banayat’s Brampton players didn’t let him down. Hometown boy Cyle Larin, a striker for Southampton FC, tied the game late in the match with a lovely shot into the bottom-right corner of Bosnia’s net, which was met with absolute bedlam in the stands. The play secured a 1–1 result for Canada, saving the game en route to continue group play against Qatar in Vancouver on Thursday.
Other fans said that the atmosphere in Toronto Stadium was the greatest they had ever experienced at a sporting event: from Alanis Morissette’s rendition of the national anthem to the endless, deafening “Canada!” chants, it felt like the city was itself performing on the world stage.
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Alex Gyongyossy wanted to surprise her dad, Lou, a Team Canada fan since the ’70s, by buying tickets as an early Father’s Day gift. They commuted to the game via the GO train from Newmarket, arriving about two hours before kick-off.
Many Torontonians have expressed fear and apprehension over Toronto Stadium’s temporary scaffolded seats, but Alex and Lou were impressed. “Way better than I was expecting,” says Lou. “Once we sat down—glorious sunshine, beautiful sight lines—it was fantastic,” Alex adds.
Mirsada Amidzic of Hamilton, who has Bosnian roots, and her best friend Cecilene Ballack were cheering hard for Canada. They secured tickets once they found out that Bosnia (and not Italy) had made Canada’s group back in April. “It’s about sharing experiences with people from different countries,” Ballack says. “This is so exciting.”
