Canada vs. Panama
International Friendly
October 15, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. ET
BMO Field in Toronto, Ontario
Watch Live: OneSoccer.ca & TELUS Ch. 980 // Tickets available here

The Canadian men’s national team have had some incredible moments on home soil over the past few years. Between ending a 34-year drought against the United States with a victory at BMO Field in 2019, defeating the Americans again during World Cup qualifiers in Hamilton in January of 2022, the famous ‘Iceteca’ victory over Mexico in Edmonton or the victory over Jamaica in March of 2022 that clinched World Cup qualification there have been some unforgettable results.

Tuesday night’s friendly match against Panama at BMO Field, even if it is Jesse Marsch’s first home game as Canada manager will not be joining that list. But as the men’s national team steps onto home turf for the first time in nearly a year, the match remains an important opportunity to reestablish that home dominance.

The last time Canada played at BMO Field in Toronto was a significant disappointment. Canada lost 3-2 to Jamaica in the 2023-24 Concacaf Nations League quarter-finals, a result which at the time put their 2024 Copa América qualification in doubt.

That loss to Jamaica ended a 17-match unbeaten streak (15 of which were wins) at home. Compounding the disappointment was the fact that in their previous home match, Canada had drawn Guadeloupe 2-2 in their 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup opener. It is the first time since 2012 that Canada has gone back-to-back matches without winning at home.

Tuesday is a chance to once again make Canadian soil a fortress for this team against a very solid regional opponent. Panama, like Canada, were able to get out of their group at this summer’s Copa América, defeating the United States and Bolivia in the process. While they have played just once since, a 2-0 loss to the United States this past Saturday, they remain an incredibly well-managed side under Thomas Christiansen.

Canada are playing for far more than pride on Tuesday night, however. The match is a critical dress rehearsal for significant home matches in the near future. Next month, they return to BMO Field for the home leg of their 2024-25 Concacaf Nations League quarter-final, the round in which they faltered in last year’s competition, against an opponent yet to be determined.

Win that, and they qualify for the Concacaf Nations League final four in March, with a chance to hoist their first trophy since 2000. Quarter-final winners will also be awarded a spot in the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup, a competition which would afford Canada another crucial opportunity to play competitive matches in the country as Vancouver’s BC Place has been named one of the host venues.

With that Nations League fixture in mind, it is also worth noting that Concacaf ranking points will be on the line on Tuesday. Canada currently sit second in the region, having leapt the United States last month after beating them on American soil for the first time since 1957 in a September friendly.

Concacaf Rankings after this window will determine seeding for the quarter-finals. Maintaining their second position might be difficult, especially since the United States have already defeated Panama 2-0 this window and play Mexico later on Tuesday night with a chance to pick up further points. But a win over Panama would at least give Canada a chance to enter the quarters as the second seed.

Canada tried to schedule a second friendly themselves, but with regional fixtures tying up pretty much every other national team that proved to be impossible. Instead, they spent the past week in training camp in Montréal, connecting with the local soccer community as they visited local clubs and had an open training session at Stade Saputo. They also defeated CF Montréal 5-0 in a behind-closed-doors training match this past Friday.

While it might not benefit this group on the pitch in the same way as a second friendly this window might have, the connection with the community that this team was able to build is nonetheless critical. Marsch has made a point of stressing the importance of this team being accessible to Canadians, and based on all accounts this camp was certainly a strong start.

The women’s national team have done an outstanding job of this over the years. Name an up-and-coming national team star, and it is quite likely that they have a photo of them as a youth player standing alongside Christine Sinclair or one of her teammates. Now, perhaps, the same can be said of the next generation of men’s national team players and Alphonso Davies, or Jonathan David.

Every home match, every home camp is a key opportunity to inspire the next generation and keep this team in the national consciousness.

This camp also included an extended 26-player roster, giving Marsch an important opportunity in a non-competitive game to take a look at some new national team options. Former Forge FC striker, now with RWD Molenbeek, Kwasi Poku, defender Jamie Knight-Lebel and U-20 standout Santiago López have all been called into their first camp.

All of this, of course, is building towards the biggest home matches in the national team’s history. Come 2026, Canada will step out onto the pitch at BMO Field, and then BC Place, with an opportunity to create moments that will forever change the trajectory of the sport in this country.

Minor building block as it may be, opportunities like Tuesday against Panama cannot be overlooked as chances to build momentum and confidence toward those matches. With only 20 months until the 2026 World Cup, there are only so many such occasions remaining.

PROJECTED LINEUPS

Canada: Crepeau; Laryea, Bombito, Cornelius, Davies; Ahmed, Eustáquio, Osorio, Shaffelburg; Larin, David

Panama: Mosquera; Escobar, Fariña, Miller; Murillo, Godoy, Carrasquilla, Blackman; Bárcenas, Fajardo, Rodriguez

ALL-TIME SERIES

 Canada wins: 5 || Panama wins: 2 || Draws: 6

Last meeting:

June 15, 2023 – Panama 0-2 Canada (2022-23 Concacaf Nations League semifinals)