New international soccer tournament coming to Toronto ahead of 2026 FIFA World Cup

Janna Abbas · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 06, 2025 7:01 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

Four countries are bringing their nationalist shot teams to Toronto this play for the last large tourney the metropolis volition big earlier it takes connected respective World Cup games adjacent year.

The Canadian Shield Tournament kicks disconnected astatine BMO Field connected Saturday and features 4 nationalist men's shot teams — Canada, Ukraine, New Zealand and Ivory Coast. 

The tourney is meant to prepare the teams for adjacent year's FIFA World Cup, according to Canada Soccer.

Canada's caput manager Jesse Marsch said his team is excited for the situation that comes with taking connected these beardown opponents. 

"It's a accidental for each of america to competitively marque definite that our teams are making steps guardant and it volition be, I think, a large acquisition for the fans [in] anticipation of what the World Cup volition beryllium adjacent summer," Marsch said astatine a quality league connected Friday. 

Canada's squad is besides acceptable to person a caller addition, arsenic Toronto FC's skipper Jonathan Osorio volition beryllium joining their roster, according to a Canada Soccer quality merchandise Thursday. 

The inaugural lucifer takes spot Saturday astatine 3:30 p.m., with Canada facing disconnected against Ukraine. The 2nd lucifer of the time volition beryllium played betwixt New Zealand and Ivory Coast.

The remainder of the matches volition instrumentality spot connected Tuesday. 

"We are fixed present connected the precise hard lucifer we person tomorrow, but looking up to Tuesday, we cognize that we volition request to usage a existent breadth of our squad for some matches due to the fact that some volition beryllium physically demanding and besides tactically demanding," Marsch said. 

The tourney is simply a accidental for shot fans to ticker immoderate of the champion players from astir the satellite conflict it out, but it's besides an accidental for the metropolis to amusement its quality to tally a large tourney — and negociate immoderate imaginable challenges that whitethorn travel with it — earlier hosting six World Cup games adjacent year. 

World Cup renos underway astatine BMO Field

Fans attending this weekend's matches volition get an aboriginal look astatine the astir $150-million upgrade BMO Field is acceptable to person up of the World Cup.

Upgrades are already underway, and volition yet see caller video boards, luxury boxes and a rooftop patio. Temporary seating is also being added, expanding the stadium's capacity from adjacent to 30,000 to 45,000, and bringing it up to FIFA World Cup standards. 

The existent signifier of renovations ends successful August, with the 2nd signifier opening successful December and ending up of the archetypal World Cup lucifer adjacent June.

The city, which owns the field, and Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment, which manages it, are spending $123 cardinal and $23 cardinal respectively connected the renovations.

Ford says province, metropolis volition sermon backing dispute

In 2022, FIFA awarded Toronto the close to big 5 archetypal circular games positive 1 playoff circular lucifer for the 2026 tournament.

However, the metropolis primitively anticipated it would big conscionable 5 World Cup matches, astatine an estimated cost of $300 million. The outgo has since climbed to $380 million, astir $200 cardinal of which is being provided by the national and provincial governments. 

Now the metropolis is clamping down connected FIFA spending unless it tin find savings connected its hosting duties oregon unafraid much wealth from different levels of government.

WATCH | City, state successful backing quality arsenic Toronto preps for 2026 World Cup: 

Last month, metropolis councillors said they will hold disconnected connected large procurements oregon immoderate ample contracts that would propulsion the outgo implicit $340 million.

Mayor Olivia Chow has said that's meant to address a $40-million shortfall created due to the fact that a important magnitude of backing pledged by the state volition beryllium utilized up for assorted services, not each of which the metropolis needs.

The provincial government has said its full concern of $97 cardinal remains unchanged, but Premier Doug Ford said Friday that the state volition beryllium down with the metropolis to sermon what tin beryllium done. 

"I looked astatine the numbers conscionable briefly, but the security's pretty dense there. The numbers I saw — like, it's massive. That's taking a large chunk retired of it. So let's instrumentality a look astatine it," helium said astatine a quality league connected Friday.