Canada's men's soccer coach Jesse Marsch looks forward to 1st game on Canadian soil

After 10 games staged in Europe and the U.S., Canada coach Jesse Marsch is getting his first real taste of what lies ahead 20 months from now when the 2026 World Cup kicks off.

Marsch and the 38th-ranked Canadian men host No. 37 Panama in an international friendly Tuesday at Toronto's BMO Field, which will stage the first of 13 World Cup games in Canada on June 12, 2026.

Canada Soccer said more than 22,200 tickets had been sold for the Panama game as of Monday morning.

The Canadians got a feel for the home support last week during their camp in Montreal, where they held an open practice and sent players out to mingle with various local youth clubs.

He is already wondering about the reception Canada could get if it goes on a run in 2026, as it did at this summer's Copa America where it made it to the third-place game before losing to No. 11 Uruguay in a penalty shootout.

"With the entire world watching, how special that would," said Cornelius. "It's just more exciting, but also more motivating to really make sure that we do the work now that's going to make us successful for the World Cup that's going to be coming in less than two years."

The Canadian men are 2-3-5 under Marsch, with one of those ties turning into the shootout loss to Uruguay and another a shootout win over No. 40 Venezuela, also at Copa America.

"We're only scratching the surface, for me, in terms of how good I believe they can become," said Marsch. "And obviously they've accelerated the learning curve with how they've performed and how they've adapted."

The American coach says he will continue to push the squad.

"Because my vision is not to win a game, not to get out of the group, but to be winners at the World Cup," he said. "Of course, can we raise