Canada’s national team is no longer a “national disgrace”.

Canada was ranked 122nd in the FIFA rankings in August 2014, it rose to 72nd in February 2021, and today it is ranked 41st in the World Cup. It’s true that this ranking isn’t worth much: you can be watching the World Cup from home, and it’s still a good barometer to measure the progress of the most innovative movements emerging in football.

Canada? Too big to know

Let’s be clear, Present-day Canada is not an unknown entity, but lives within the geopolitical boundaries of the nation it represents. Too big to ignore, too close to America to consider. Beyond the inherent sympathy of a flag with a red maple leaf on a white background, no one even mentions them among possible surprises in Qatar. Not much is said about it, very little It’s okay to have one Depressed But this national team deserves more respect.

In short, let’s not talk about Mexico 1986, a team that left no sign of its existence except in the almanacs: three games, zero points, zero goals and only one honorable defeat against France, a goal by Bob, to remember. The other two defeats, 2-0 against the Soviet Union and Hungary, are hidden in numbers known only to sports statisticians. The team man during those years was goalkeeper Martino “Tino” Lettieri, who found his fortune, sports and otherwise, in the North American Soccer League. Hers is one of many stories of Italian immigrants who moved far from home without leaving many traces. Like the others Nasl closed its doors in 1984 with investors’ dreams. In short, you can’t ask much from a national team that didn’t even have a shred of a championship at the time. Today however Canada is a team with very strong backs who have been able to develop their talents, including children of immigrants interested in football., With a system that speaks to modern football, the competition manages to field players without chasing them through the record offices..

Pure socialist rationalism

A big win is still an experiment considering the Canadian championship – Since 2019 there is a Canadian Premier League – When the best teams play in America.

No wonder the Canadians were so pragmatic: it was necessary to maximize what one had and created teams in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal, manifesting a long-dormant passion with concrete results. The experts who spoke of pure socialist rationality were right: The Ottawa Soccer Federation has, in fact, taken the best of what MLS has to offer to build better facilities and have a more competitive environment to play in. Stadiums filled up, important players arrived – the example of Bernardeschi and Incinema is still relevant today – and equally valid. Suffice it to say that Alphonso Davies, who plays for Bayern Munich and the national team’s most representative players, is the result of these selections. Jonathan David plays the lead role with Lilly.

From “National Disgrace” to Rebirth by John Herman

Behind these stories lies the dedication of those who truly believe in the rebirth of Canadian soccer. Victor Montagliani – Abruzzo-born entrepreneur, sports manager and current CONCACAF president – may have read the derogatory words of the ‘Montreal Gazette’ years ago, which, with a vindictive spirit, wrote bluntly about the national soccer team. “One of the few things the Canadian sports world should be ashamed of”. It’s hard to blame your colleagues. The experience of 1986 wasn’t enough, it seemed like a homeopathic cure for a movement that had to wait three decades to get back on track.

Being ready for when a new generation of talent starts to emerge has been the mantra in recent years. Montagliani’s successor, Steve Reid, seized the opportunity to lead the Canadian Soccer Federation in a more unique than rare choice, inviting the coach of the women’s team from 2011 to 2017 (bronze in London 2012 and Rio 2016). The unthinkable in European football will be useful in shaping a nascent team. All said and done: England’s John Herdmann proved that the growth achieved in women’s football can be replicated in the men’s field.

A dream come true despite everyone’s doubts. This time he’s not aiming for the semi-finals, nor is he looking to enrich the palms of professional captain Atiba Hutchinson (already rich), but he certainly wants to be in football that counts. The World Cup will be played on home soil in four years, and there is no better opportunity to prove that Canada will not be ignored.