World Cup fuels popularity of soccer in hockey-mad Canada

VANCOUVER, June 15 : Ice hockey may still define Canada's sporting identity, but soccer is gaining in popularity due to its simplicity and accessibility, and co-hosting the World Cup will be another huge boost for the sport, Canada defender Joel Waterman said on Monday.

Soccer is Canada's fastest-growing sport, particularly among young people, with nearly a million registered players nationwide in a country where fans traditionally favour ice hockey, American and Canadian football, basketball and baseball.

The national team began their World Cup campaign with a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Group B in Toronto and have since moved to Vancouver where they play Qatar, the 2022 World Cup hosts, on Thursday.

"We're Canadian and obviously hockey has always been our top sport, but there's more kids playing soccer nowadays than ever before," Waterman told reporters.

"It's really easy to get into and the kids love it. It's just a ball. They can play it anywhere. We want to see people playing in the streets.

"In Toronto, they had little 5 v 5 pitches in the centre there and we went down there to watch. It was just great to see the passion and we want to create that community of soccer players and the next generation to come through and play for our national team."

The 30-year-old Waterman, who plays for Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire, grew up in Aldergrove in Langley, a community in British Columbia near Vancouver.

"It means the world," Waterman said of playing in Vancouver. "I'm only an hour from my hometown. This is obviously the province where I'm from.

"I have immense pride in representing those people that are from here and in those communities, representing my old clubs that I used to play for. So, it's a true