Brampton\u2019s Tajon Buchanan knows black-and-white images of his face are posted on billboards and flashing on TVs across Canada.<\/p>\n
Bright orange rivulets of sweat streak his skin, part of Gatorade\u2019s latest campaign ahead of this summer\u2019s FIFA World Cup.<\/p>\n
Living in eastern Spain, Buchanan doesn\u2019t see the ads, but he hears about them from family and friends \u2014 and the Canadian midfielder admits he\u2019s still getting used to the idea.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously it\u2019s new. I more just stay to myself, so I wasn\u2019t really big into doing all the media and marketing stuff,\u201d he said in a video interview from his home in Villarreal, Spain.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut once the opportunity came up, it\u2019s a great opportunity to take advantage of those things. The biggest sporting event is coming to our country, so these things are very important.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buchanan, 27, has been taking advantage of a lot of new opportunities in recent years.<\/p>\n
Hailing from Brampton, he played his collegiate soccer at Syracuse University before starting his pro career with Major League Soccer\u2019s New England Revolution. He was transferred first to Belgium\u2019s Club Bruge in 2022, then to Inter Milan in 2024 before landing with Villarreal CF in 2025.<\/p>\n
Uncertainty clouded Buchanan\u2019s initial arrival at Villarreal. He was on loan and still working his way back after breaking his leg while training with the national team for the Copa America in the summer of 2024.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to just get back to my best level, regain my fitness levels. So it was a difficult time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The La Liga club made the move permanent last July and Buchanan flourished this season, recording seven goals and one assist across 34 league appearances.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce it became permanent, I think I was able just to relax and just focus on football again and enjoy it,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I think from day one, when I arrived here on a permanent basis, it\u2019s been that. And the coaches have helped me so much in that way, and I think from there it\u2019s just been flowing. And I\u2019ve been feeling really good.\u201d<\/p>\n
A familiar face joined Buchanan in Spain this season in forward Tani Oluwaseyi. Villarreal acquired the 26-year-old Canadian from Minnesota United last summer after he put up team highs in both goals (10) and assists (eight).<\/p>\n
The move bonded the two Canadians, Buchanan said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe became a lot closer, and that\u2019s very good for on the field, but then definitely off the field,\u201d he said. \u201cTo have another Canadian over here in Europe playing for such a big club, we just relate in so many different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having a countryman in the locker room helped ease Oluwaseyi\u2019s transition to La Liga.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing the only person from your part of the world and in a space can be difficult. It\u2019s not fun at times,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut having (Buchanan) there, who\u2019s experienced it, who\u2019s done the same move as I have to Europe from the MLS, and being in that locker room together definitely made things easier for us. Because we can bounce ideas off each other, we can be critical of each other, and overall just have a good time with each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
This week, the Canadian duo are in Charlotte, N.C., with the national team for a pre-World Cup training camp.<\/p>\n
Thirty-two players made the camp roster and head coach Jesse Marsch is set to narrow the group down to a 26-man World Cup roster by Friday.<\/p>\n
For Buchanan, a standout at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the squad is full of high-level athletes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we have guys that have played in big games and in big moments, have those experiences to go out there and fight for something,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a roster that\u2019s very deep now, probably the deepest roster that Canada has ever had. And I think it shows that at any given time anyone could play on the field and make a difference. So, I think that\u2019s very good for the team culture, to push each player. And it\u2019s going to be very important if we\u2019re going to try and do something special.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canada\u2019s World Cup quest begins on June 12 when the country hosts Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto.<\/p>\n
The national team will then shift to Vancouver ahead of group-stage matchups with Qatar on June 18 and Switzerland on June 24.<\/p>\n
Playing in soccer\u2019s biggest showcase on home soil will be a new experience for every single player on the team, Buchanan said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think any of us know what it\u2019s really going to feel like until you know that moment comes,\u201d he said \u201cJust having family, friends in the stadium, the biggest sporting event in the world in Toronto and in Vancouver \u2014 I don\u2019t know what to expect.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I\u2019m super excited and I can\u2019t wait to see the country get behind us, and for us to go out there and put on a performance for the whole nation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press<\/p>\n