Tickets to go on sale for second Canada v Trinidad and Tobago Match on Vancouver Island

Canada Soccer has announced that tickets to see Canada’s Men’s National Team face Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday 31 March will go on sale to the public this coming Wednesday 4 March at 10.00 local via Ticketmaster.ca and by phone at 1.855.985.5000. The 31 March match will be the second of two matches Canada will play against Trinidad and Tobago at Westhills Stadium in the upcoming FIFA window, with the first match set for Friday 27 March.

The announcement follows an incredible response by Canadian fans to the 27 March match with all seated tickets selling out in just a few short hours of going on sale to the public and additional standing room inventory sold in the following days.  

“These are important games for Canada and we wanted to play them at home to give the team the best conditions possible to perform with the people of Vancouver Island providing us with that 12th man atmosphere,” said Herdman. “We are excited that the community has had such a strong response and that we will have two jammed packed stadiums with fans young and old from football communities that don’t often get to see their national team heroes in the flesh.”

Tickets to the Canada v Trinidad and Tobago 31 March match will start as low as $20 via Ticketmaster.ca (or by calling 1.855.985.5000). To ensure the Canadian soccer community has the best opportunity to attend the match and take advantage of the chance to see some of their favourite heroes, groups of 10 or more will have access to an exclusive pre-order window ahead of the public on-sale. Due to stadium capacity there will be limited group inventory available and will be sold on a first come first serve basis. To access the group ticket program, featuring discounts of up to 30%, groups must submit their orders by 17.00 PT on Tuesday 3 March via the group order form.

The two-match series with Concacaf rivals Trinidad and Tobago is part of Canada’s ongoing preparations for FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers in the Fall of 2020.

With two different qualifying pathways scheduled for the region, Canada are in a chase for a top-six spot in Concacaf on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings in order to compete in the Concacaf Hex (nations 1-6) rather than a more demanding alternate route (nations 7-35). Trailing El Salvador by 30 points in July 2019, Canada have already cut that gap in half and now trail by just 14 points after a trio of matches in January 2020. From Concacaf Nations League matches in the Fall, Canada gained more FIFA ranking points than any other nation in League A.

“We are still in the hunt for the Concacaf Hex and we have cut the points gap in half through Concacaf Nations League,” said John Herdman, Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team Head Coach. “We are focused on doing our best to pick up points and close the gap on that sixth spot in Concacaf.”

Since the Concacaf pathways were unveiled in July 2019, Canada have picked up 20 points on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings while El Salvador have picked up just four. Canada have also opened the gap on the several nations behind them, notably eighth-place Curaçao (19 points back) and ninth-place Panama (28 points back).

The first match on 27 March represents the first international “A” match on Vancouver Island since Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team played at Victoria’s Centennial Stadium on 4 March 2006. Previously on Vancouver Island, Canada played Olympic Qualifiers in 1983 and 1984 (they qualified for the Los Angeles Men’s Olympic Football Tournament at Victoria’s Royal Athletic Park on 18 April 1984), FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers in 1985 (on the road to qualifying for the 1986 FIFA World Cup™), and Concacaf Women’s Championship matches in 2002 (on the road to qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup USA 2003™).

The Canada camp will run from 23-31 March in Vancouver, Langford, and Victoria, British Columbia, with the opening part of their camp training held at the Vancouver Whitecaps FC National Soccer Development Centre at the University of British Columbia.

Canada have previously met Trinidad and Tobago 11 times at the international “A” level between 1977 and 2012, including competitive matches at the Concacaf Gold Cup and FIFA World Cup™ Qualifiers. Across those matches, Canada have seven wins, two draws, and two losses against Trinidad and Tobago. Canada also won 2:0 over Trinidad and Tobago in a training match before the 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup last year.

Already this year, Canada have posted two wins and one loss in three international matches played in January. Since 2018, Canada have won 12 of their 16 international matches. In 2019, Canada reached the Quarter-finals of back-to-back Concacaf Gold Cups for the first time since 2009 and finished second in their group of the inaugural Concacaf Nations League A (tied on points with USA, but second on goals difference). Canada also qualified for the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup and the next edition of Concacaf Nations League A.

CONCACAF CHAMPIONS

Canada are two-time Concacaf champions, having won the Concacaf Championship in 1985 and the Concacaf Gold Cup in 2000. In winning the 1985 Concacaf Championship, Canada qualified for the 1986 FIFA World Cup Mexico™; in winning the 2000 Concacaf Gold Cup, Canada qualified for the FIFA Confederations Cup Korea/Japan 2001.

MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM https://www.canadasoccer.com/men-s-national-team-p144311

Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Youth Teams, meanwhile, have won two Concacaf titles: both the 1986 and 1996 Concacaf Men’s Youth Championships. Canada have qualified for eight editions of the FIFA U-20 World Cup and seven editions of the FIFA U-17 World Cup.