Team Canada draws Bosnia—not Italy—for its first World Cup match

The vibes will be off at Cafe Diplomatico this summer. For months, footie fans believed that Team Canada was destined to face four-time champions Italy in its opening match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. But, last night, Italy was knocked out of the tournament after losing a qualifier to Bosnia and Herzegovina—now Canada’s official first opponent.

That means the GTA’s massive Italian population won’t be able to cheer on their beloved Azzurri in Little Italy—or Woodbridge, for that matter—come June. This is the third straight men’s World Cup that Italy will miss.

Related: FIFA has cancelled reservations at hotel rooms across Toronto

On Monday, Canada’s head coach, Jesse Marsch, caused a bit of a stir when he facetiously addressed the possibility of Italy fans outnumbering Canada fans should they play in Toronto. “If it’s Italy, man, we should be ripping all those blue jerseys and burning them,” said Marsch, who resides in Italy.

Such an outcome, of course, is no longer a concern, with Canada opening its campaign at Toronto Stadium (BMO Field’s name for the duration of the tournament) on June 12 against Bosnia—a strong team loaded with stars, like current captain and former Manchester City striker Edin Džeko.

Related: Olivia Chow wants to keep ICE out of Toronto during the World Cup

“I have a lot of respect for what Bosnia has achieved, what those people have been through, what those players have been through,” Marsch said after Canada tied Tunisia nil–nil in a friendly game on a wet, lightning-filled Tuesday night in Toronto. “I know we’re in for a really difficult first match.”