Canadian soccer fans erupted in cheers June 18 as the men’s national team won their first-ever World Cup victory, besting Qatar 6–0 in front of a packed crowd at the B.C. Place in Vancouver.

The Canadian team played with speed and intensity, achieving 79 percent possession in a rough game in which Qatar drew two red cards, including a tackle on Canada’s Ismaël Koné that resulted in him being carried off the field on a stretcher.

The victory now puts Canada in a strong position heading into its final group match against Switzerland June 24.

Lifelong soccer fan and former soccer player Rocky Munro watched the match with excitement and said he’s been waiting since the 1980s for Canada to win its first World Cup match.

“Our level is going up!” he said while out with friends to watch the game at the Black Swan Pub in Shawnigan Lake, B.C. “I’ve been waiting since ‘82 to see them score a goal ... and now I want to see a win.”

Under World Cup rules, a match victory garners three points, a tie one point, and a loss zero. Up until last week’s 1–1 tie against Bosnia and Herzegovina on June 12, Canada hadn’t scored a single point in a World Cup since first qualifying for the tournament in 1986.

Early Domination

Canada dominated play early on against Qatar, with goals from Cyle Larin and Jonathan David. Qatari defender Homam Ahmed was sent off the field after fouling Canada’s Tajon Buchanan. This was followed by David racking up his second goal of the game just prior to halftime.

After the half, Canadian midfielder Koné suffered a serious leg injury after Qatar’s Assim Madibo tackled him, resulting in Qatar’s second red card and leaving the Qataris with just nine players on the field compared to Canada’s full roster of 11.

Canada secured its lead when Nathan-Dylan Saliba sailed home a goal in the 64th minute, securing a 4–0 lead, followed up by Qatari defender Mohamed Manai mistakenly putting the ball in his own net for an own-goal and making the score 5–0.

This was followed by an additional goal by David, giving him a hat trick in the game and bringing the score to 6–0.

‘It Was Amazing’

Enthusiasm surrounding Canada’s World Cup run goes beyond regular soccer fans and sports fans.

Marie Trudel, who works as a waitress at the Black Swan, said she’s never been much of a fan but that’s changed lately after she and her son went to a World Cup fan party in Vancouver on June 14.

“It was amazing, the big screens and everything,” Trudel said, noting there were “thousands” of enthusiastic fans in attendance at the event at the Pacific National Exhibition grounds in Vancouver.

“My son is seven, and we’re not into sports that much, but just to see the people, and everybody was wearing their colors, and it was just amazing.”

Another fan who watched the match was Prime Minister Mark Carney, who attended the game at B.C. Place following a funding announcement earlier in the day in Vancouver that includes more than $750 million toward funding for sports and a national soccer training centre. Also present at the game was B.C. Premier David Eby.

World Cup

The World Cup started June 11 and the final victory match is set for July 19. The tournament features 48 teams from around the world divided into 12 groups of four, lettered A to L.

Each team plays three matches, after which the top two teams from each group and the eight best third-place teams advance to the Round of 32. The tournament then proceeds through the Round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final.

In total, 104 matches will be played in this year’s tournament, with games played at stadiums throughout Canada, the United States, and Mexico.