Derek Cornelius used to be able to walk down Canadian streets in relative anonymity.
Not anymore.
Canada’s run at this summer’s FIFA World Cup has shone a bright new light on many of the national squad’s players, and they say that support is helping to fuel their success.
“I think for a lot of the guys, maybe when we’re playing on our European teams, when you go out on the street, you could maybe get recognized and asked for pictures and autographs, but not so much in Canada,” Cornelius said ahead of training on Sunday.
“But, honestly, the last two weeks, we go out of the hotel and it’s like we’re getting swarmed. And it’s nice.
“It means that people are following, people are really paying attention to what we’re doing, the players, the individuals. That’s a nice feeling to experience that in our home country.”
Canada is co-hosting this year’s tournament with the United States and Mexico, and is playing all three group-stage games on home soil.
It kicked off the tournament in Toronto, battling Bosnia-Herzegovina to a 1-1 draw in front of an announced crowd of 43,002 on June 12.
The team then travelled to their training base in Vancouver where they thumped Qatar 6-0 for the country’s first-ever victory in a men’s World Cup on Thursday. A boisterous red-clad sea of 52,349 fans spent much of the game cheering.
“I felt like Toronto was electric in the first game, and I felt like Vancouver was almost unbelievable for me,” said midfielder Liam Millar. “Obviously, the fans of Toronto were obviously great as well, but the national anthem in Vancouver, when they sung it, it was probably the loudest I’ve heard an ‘O Canada,’ and I was getting goosebumps the whole time.”
The noisy crowds clad in Canada jerseys are somewhat of a novelty for the team, Millar said, and their energy gives the players a boost.
It’s a completely different atmosphere from what he and his teammates experienced four years ago when the nation made its first World Cup appearance in 36 years.
“You really feel now what the difference is of being at a home World Cup compared to even what it was like in Qatar,” Millar said.
“It’s like a 12th man. It really is an advantage, it’s such a big advantage. And that’s why I feel like if we win the group and stay in Vancouver, it just gives us even more of that advantage, just to have a constant 12th man behind us and supporting us and getting us through tough moments, knowing that the crowd’s gonna be with us no matter what.”
Another lively crowd is expected Wednesday when Canada wraps Group B play against Switzerland in Vancouver.
The two countries currently sit atop the group standings with four points apiece, but Canada holds an edge in goal differential (+6) and would take first place with either a win or a draw.
Finishing No. 1 would earn the squad a round-of-32 game in Vancouver on July 2. Coming in second would see the team play the second-place team from Group A in Los Angeles on June 28.
The Canadians want to continue playing on home soil, where they’ve played their last four games, including two pre-tournament friendlies in Edmonton and Montreal.
Sharing soccer with the entire country is key to the future of the sport, Millar said.
“I feel like we want to grow the sport in every single province in the country, and we want to get it bigger everywhere,” he said. “So, I think it’s really important for us to go out there and for us to show what we are and who we are to each different province … It’s just amazing to be able to get around the country, see different faces, see different people, and be able to show our support for each province.”
In years past, games on Canadian soil have included a lot of away fans in the stands, wearing an opponent’s jersey. There’s been a big push to change that, Cornelius said, and make sure that everyone at Canada games is wearing red and getting behind the national team.
“We really want to make football a sport for Canadians,” he said. “And that’s across from side to side, from coast to coast, so wherever we’ve gone, especially these last few weeks, we’ve had tremendous support.
“I think you see a country that’s finally excited about their Canadian men’s national team. And that’s part of the reason why we put on that jersey, to inspire the next generation, and hopefully to make all Canadians proud.”
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