Just catching up on some correspondence. Ceri Rees writes in from Pontypool, Ontario.<\/p>\n
double quotation markIt breaks my heart to see the empty seats in Toronto. I\u2019m an ex-pat and Brighton fan sitting an hour away and would have given anything to be at the game. But I, like so many other ex-pats and native Canadians alike, am simply unable to justify the price being asked for those seats. Shame on FIFA for preferring empty seats to fulfilling the dreams of real football fans.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a>HALF-TIME: Canada 0-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina<\/p>\n A frustrating half for the co-hosts. They\u2019ve had most of the ball, a couple of decent chances, and loads of corners. But Bosnia have the goal.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a016.06 EDT<\/p>\n 45+3 min Long-throw time again for Canada<\/a> \u2026 after a bit of pinball Johnston smashes an effort, but Kolasinac gets in the block. Cornelius rises to head a corner wide.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 45+1 min We\u2019ll have four added minutes. Lukic, the goalscorer, gets a yellow after getting his foot high on Buchanan.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 45 min Demirovic goes in the book after lunging into Cornelius. Laryea shows decent pace to get back and shield the ball out for a Canada<\/a> goalkick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 44 min Some glum faces among the home support as Kolasinac sends a throw into the Canada<\/a> area.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 42 min De Fougerolles launches a mazy dribble inside his half before Canada<\/a> wheel it around at the back. Johnston and Memic have had a tidy battle over on Bosnia\u2019s left wing, and the former goes down to win a foul.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 40 min Canada\u2019s gazillionth corner of this half comes and goes.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 39 min Buchanan presses boost and zips down the right, stepovers in the mix, and wins a corner. Bosnia stay resolute.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a016.03 EDT<\/p>\n 38 min Another corner follows from the other side \u2026 but Canada<\/a> aren\u2019t threatening at all with the dead ball.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 37 min Millar has looked sharp on the left for Canada<\/a> and wins a corner.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 35 min The camera finds Wrexham\u2019s Ryan Reynolds. He also acts.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 32 min The game\u2019s stuck in Bosnia\u2019s half \u2026 and Oluwaseyi muscles away Muharemovic to gain space inside the area \u2026 he has time but fires high with his left foot, unable to control the bouncing ball. That\u2019s another big chance.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.35 EDT<\/p>\n 30 min Jonathan David is at the centre of things, this time winning Canada<\/a> a free-kick from the left after a needless foul from Muharemovic. Canada waste it, though.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 28 min Millar fizzes in a pass to Jonathan David inside the area \u2026 he shapes to have a go with his left boot but the effort is blocked. The lively Buchanan helps win Canada<\/a> a corner.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 27 min Johnston fight for the ball over on the right before Buchanan does the same, winning Canada<\/a> a free-kick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Time for a hydration break. Canadian fans may want something a little stronger. It was Kolasinac who assisted with the flick-on.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n They\u2019ve been threatening with the dead ball and they make it count with a corner. It\u2019s simple stuff: a ball into the near post, flicked on and then headed in by Lukic, too close to miss from there. It\u2019s his first goal in international football. Tidy time to get it.<\/p>\n Bosnia and Herzegovina\u2019s Jovo Lukic nods the ball home to open the scoring Updated at\u00a015.36 EDT<\/p>\n GOAL! Canada 0-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina (Lukic 21)<\/p>\n Bosnia strike with the set-piece!<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.27 EDT<\/p>\n 19 min Laryea rampages down the left for Canada<\/a> with serious energy. Marsch\u2019s men are moving with a bit more fluency now.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 17 min Canada finally come alive. Kon\u00e9 splits Bosnia with a ball to Oluwaseyi, who crosses in from the left, searching for David. Canada<\/a> push numbers forward as Millar sends in a cross of his own \u2026 moments later the ball breaks perfectly for Jonathan David inside the area and he goes first-time, hitting it straight at Vasilj. It\u2019s a poor effort \u2013 he really needed to do more with it, could\u2019ve even taken a touch before launching. Marsch fumes on the touchline.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 15 min The corner is taken short and doesn\u2019t cause any bother as Bosnia counter \u2026 but the ball hits the referee to stop play.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 14 min Johnston fires in a quick throw, Jonathan David is on to it, crossing from the right and winning a corner \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 13 min In comes the free-kick from the left \u2026 Lukic can\u2019t make clean contact with his header. Once again, though, it\u2019s Bosnia who get to it first in Canada\u2019s box.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 11 min All a bit nervy and scrappy at the moment. A wayward pass from Oluwaseyi has Canada<\/a> retreating and Johnston takes down Memic \u2026 it\u2019s a yellow for the right-back.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 10 min Millar has another chance to throw long from the left \u2026 but Bosnia deal with it well at the front post.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 8 min Johnston pings the ball down the line for Buchanan to chase \u2026 but the man-mountain Kolasinac is up for the battle.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 6 min De Fougerolles gets plenty of love from the crowd after shielding the ball away from Lukic to win Canada<\/a> a goalkick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 5 min Bosnia have another free-kick, this time from the right. It\u2019s taken short before Basic whips into the area \u2026 Lukic rises for a header that travels well wide.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 4 min There\u2019s already a rather manic energy to this, months of pent-up energy getting released.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 3 min The rehearsed corner \u2013 sent in low \u2013 doesn\u2019t cause any bother. Kolasinac is fouled by Johnston over on Bosnia\u2019s left, the free-kick comes into the area \u2026 and the ball drop nicely for Memic \u2026 he blasts high. There were plenty of shirts in front of him, but that was a decent chance.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 1 min Millar sends in a long throw for Canada<\/a> from the left \u2026 and it leads to a corner. Eustaquio to deliver \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Peeeep!<\/p>\n Canada decked out in red; Bosnia in white with blue sleeves. The co-hosts get us going \u2013 history is made.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Alanis Morissette \u2013 yep, that\u2019s right \u2013 sings the Canadian anthem.<\/p>\n Canada players react after their national anthem. Photograph: Alex Pantling\/Fifa\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.26 EDT<\/p>\n The players make their way out of the tunnel \u2013 the full squads have emerged. Looks a gorgeous day in Toronto.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The BBC coverage has cut away from Bubl\u00e9. I. Am. Fuming.<\/p>\n That.Is.A.Disgrace. Photograph: Stephanie Scarbrough\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.02 EDT<\/p>\n Here\u2019s Bubl\u00e9. This is what we\u2019ve been waiting for. Go on, my son.<\/p>\n Michael Bubl\u00e9 performs during the Parade of Nations. Photograph: Ezra Shaw\/Fifa\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.02 EDT<\/p>\n Rebekah Voss writes in:<\/p>\n double quotation markThe first World Cup game I remember was a minor game that you probably haven\u2019t heard of \u2026 this casual affair between Brazil and Germany in 2014. I was nine at the time and hadn\u2019t heard of soccer before (look, I\u2019m from a rather rural area of America, okay?) and I was starstruck. Thomas M\u00fcller and Toni Kroos made scoring look so easy and Manuel Neuer was just fantastic. I thought he was a god out there. My classmates and I played soccer sometimes during recess and I opted goalie each time. I wasn\u2019t half bad at it, seeing as I\u2019m a head taller than most. It was my dream when I was younger of one day meeting Manuel Neuer and blowing him away with my goalie skills. Funny what kids think of, right?<\/p>\n As I\u2019ve grown through the years, I\u2019ve become an avid fan of the beautiful game. I follow every Bayern game and I\u2019ve got a couple of M\u00fcller shirts \u2014 my prized possession is my 2014 World Cup kit with M\u00fcller on the back. I\u2019m dreaming of getting a Neuer shirt one day if I can find one for cheap enough.<\/p>\n All of this to say is, I was originally so excited when I first heard the World Cup was coming to America. Arrowhead Stadium\u2019s only five-ish hours from my place and I was set on getting to go there. But the prices made it impossible to justify, and honestly, looking at the state of our country and all of the idiocy and callous cruelty that Trump and his henchmen are causing, I\u2019m rather glad I\u2019m not contributing to this bread and circus. But I have this silly little dream that maybe my countrymen will get their heads out of the dirt and see the beauty of this sport \u2013 and the beauty of other people who may not look or talk or think exactly as they do, but are still human beings with a capacity for creativity and kindness and all the little things that make us human. Funny what kids think of, right?<\/p>\n Share<\/a> Still no sign of Bubl\u00e9, worryingly, though no doubt he\u2019s saving himself for the grandest and glitziest of entrances. Freed from Desire is blaring for now.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Away from football, another World Cup<\/a> has kicked off in England:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Juventus\u2019 Jonathan David is up front for Canada<\/a> and their record goalscorer with 39 in 77 games:<\/p>\n Jonathan David <\/a>Share<\/a><\/p>\n This Today in Focus ep is worth a listen.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Alphonso Davies, still on the mend, wasn\u2019t expected to be in Canada\u2019s XI for their opener. Bosnia\u2019s biggest name, Edin Dzeko, is on the bench.<\/p>\n Edin Dzeko<\/a>Share<\/a><\/p>\n Forget the World Cup<\/a> just for a sec \u2026 some news from Scotland. <\/p>\n Share<\/a>The teams<\/p>\n Canada: Cr\u00e9peau, Johnston, De Fougerolles, Cornelius, Laryea, Buchanan, Kon\u00e9, Eust\u00e1quio, Millar, Jonathan David, Oluwaseyi<\/p>\n Subs: St. Clair, Goodman, Jones, Waterman, Choini\u00e8re, Larin, Shaffelburg, Bombito, Davies, Ahmed, Osorio, Sigur, Promise, Saliba, Nelson<\/p>\n Bosnia and Herzegovina: Vasilj, Dedic, Katic, Muharemovic, Kolasinac, Bajraktarevic, Basic, Tahirovic, Memic, Demirovic, Lukic<\/p>\n Subs: Jurkas, Zlomislic, Mujakic, Hadzikadunic, Gigovic, Bazdar, Dzeko, Sunjic, Hadziahmetovic, Burnic, Alajbegovic, Radeljic, Tabakovic, Malic, Mahmic<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A fair few empty seats for this ceremony \u2026. though we\u2019re still waiting for Bubl\u00e9.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Miss yesterday\u2019s opening ceremony? Don\u2019t worry, we\u2019ve got another in the works. Yep, Michael Bubl\u00e9 is one of several performers about to grace the Toronto Stadium.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Partey to miss Ghana’s World Cup opener after Canada visa refused<\/p>\n Here\u2019s more on that breaking story:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The Athletic is reporting that Thomas Partey will not play in Ghana\u2019s opening game after his visa application to Canada<\/a> was refused. The Black Stars face Panama next week in Toronto before playing England in Boston and Croatia in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n Share<\/a> It is a brilliant atmosphere at Toronto Stadium, with Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina<\/a> supporters drinking in the occasion. Canada fans marched to the ground en masse, some high-fiving the Bosnian supporters who got stuck amid the traffic, flares and chants the order of the day. It was a sticky morning in the city, with no discernible evidence of a historic match taking place, but that has all changed with a couple of hours until kick-off. There was an a cappella version of O Canada, of course. There is pedigree among the media corps, too, with Bastian Schweinsteiger and Owen Hargreaves, who was born in Calgary, both in the building. There were suggestions in Bosnian media that they may have more fans in attendance, but Jesse Marsch was in no doubt on the eve of the game. \u201cThat stadium is going to be red, not blue,\u201d he said, matter-of-factly.<\/p>\n Members of the Voyageurs, Canada\u2019s national team supporters, march toward Toronto Stadium. Photograph: Jon Blacker\/The Canadian Press\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.08 EDT<\/p>\n All you need to know about the two sides:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Here\u2019s what Jesse Marsch has had to say in the buildup, heralding the multiculturalism of his squad. Welcome words from the former Leeds manager.<\/p>\n double quotation markFrom the moment I stepped into the environment with this team, I was incredibly impressed by how much they loved each other, how much they were drawn to each other and how much, even though there were differences, their back stories had similarities: first and second-generation Canadian, Portuguese, French, Jamaican, Colombian, Scottish \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n Mexico\u2019s had its turn; off we roll to Canada, hosting the men\u2019s World Cup for the very first time. That\u2019s history already guaranteed<\/a> but Jesse Marsch will want more from the day, particularly when he\u2019s assembled a team that reached the semi-finals of the 2024 Copa Am\u00e9rica and have lost just one game in normal time in the last year. A point would be significant for Canada \u2013 they\u2019ve played six World Cup games and lost them all \u2013 but this really is their time to make a splash and get to the knockouts.<\/p>\n Up first: Edin Dzeko\u2019s Bosnia and Herzegovina. Yep, he\u2019s still knocking them in at 40<\/a>, part of the side that ground their way through the qualifying playoffs, breaking Welsh and Italian hearts, back at the World Cup for the first time in 12 years. Time to ruin the Toronto party, too? We\u2019ll see at 3pm local time. Or 8pm in BST money (5am Saturday AEST).<\/p>\n
Photograph: Kevin Sousa\/Imagn Images\/ReutersBosnia and Herzegovina’s Jovo Lukic celebrates scoring their first goal. Photograph: Claudia Greco\/ReutersBosnia and Herzegovina fans celebrate their first goal by Jovo Lukic, Photograph: Ezra Shaw\/Fifa\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Ben](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1781294830_760_Ben_Fisher.png\")
Ben Fisher<\/p>\nBen Fisher<\/p>\n