This will be Canada’s first home game since qualifying for this year’s World Cup in Qatar after finishing first overall in the Concacaf final round.
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Canada Soccer has announced that Panama will replace Iran for Sunday’s friendly match in Vancouver. The previously allotted friendly with Iran drew criticism from politicians and the families of Canadians killed aboard a Ukrainian passenger plane shot down near Tehran in January 2020. With just days left before Sunday’s match, Canada has found a replacement for the fixture in the form of Panama. Notably, this will be Canada’s first home game since qualifying for this year’s World Cup in Qatar after finishing first overall in the Concacaf final round.
The new development comes after Canada Soccer confirmed last Thursday that their June 5 friendly with Iran, which was slated to take place at BC Place in Vancouver, had been canceled. Politicians and the general public were critical of Canada hosting Iran. It comes after 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents were among the 176 people killed on January 8, 2020, when a commercial plane was shot down by an Iranian missile minutes after taking off from Tehran, according to reports.
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“Canada Soccer has the best intentions in striving to ensure that the Men’s National Team gains important experience against FIFA World Cup teams in preparation for Qatar 2022. Over the past week, the untenable geopolitical situation of hosting Iran became significantly divisive, and in response, the match was cancelled. While we considered the external factors in selecting the optimal opponent in our original decision-making process, we will strive to do better moving forward,” an earlier statement from Canada Soccer read.
Tickets for the Panama encounter in the lower bowl will cost $30, according to Canada Soccer. “All tickets in the lower bowl for the Canada v Panama match will be priced at $30 to thank Canadian fans for their support in light of the recently cancelled international match and to provide an opportunity to celebrate Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team’s qualification for Qatar 2022. Tickets will go on sale Wednesday 1 June at 12:00 noon PT/15:00 ET via Ticketmaster.ca,” a statement from the official website added.
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Starting with the match against Panama on Sunday, Canada will take on Curaçao at BC Place on Thursday (June 9) and Honduras on Monday (June 13) at Estadio Olimpico in San Pedro Sula. “Canada’s three June matches will air live on OneSoccer, available as a linear channel on Telus’s Optik TV(Channel 980) as well as online at OneSoccer.ca, through the OneSoccer app and on the fuboTV Canada platform. Fans will find extended coverage for the matches across Canada Soccer’s digital channels on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube featuring the hashtag #MNT,” a statement from Canada Soccer read.
