The path to qualify for the World Cup out of CONCACAF may not boast the star-studded competitions you see in CONMEBOL (South America) or UEFA (Europe), but it’s never been an easy road. Away teams have to deal with hostile crowds, subpar field conditions and a variety of shenanigans around the team hotel. It’s not uncommon for teams to get awoken by fire alarms or late-night firework displays. Everyone gets involved.
Again, it’s tough. No away team enjoys it. And now, even Canada — CANADA! — is going all in with some peak CONCACAF’ing of its own.
While U.S. Soccer fans have heard plenty in recent months about its youthful and talented roster, Canada is enjoying somewhat of a Golden Generation of its own. Led by Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies, Canada is in a position to qualify for its first World Cup since 1986 (the nation’s only World Cup appearance).
A win on Tuesday against Mexico would go a long way towards putting Canada in position to achieve that goal. And man, the Canadian Soccer Association is doing all it can to make Mexico’s experience up North absolutely miserable. The game will be played in Edmonton at the open-air Commonwealth Stadium, and it’ll look like this:
Estadio #Iceteca 🥶🇨🇦
(let's get that trending, eh?)
Edmonton! We're counting on you to make this our Frozen Fortress tonight. You know what to do!#CANMNT #WCQ #ForCanada pic.twitter.com/TELcxdQHEY
— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) November 16, 2021
ICETECA!
Edmonton forecast for kick-off:
-7°C with a chance of crunching tackles & relentless #CANMNT pressure
🇨🇦🥶👿#WCQ #ForCanada pic.twitter.com/IWYHdUO4qd— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) November 16, 2021
Instead of scheduling the game in Vancouver at the indoor BC Place, Canada chose to avoid those comfortable conditions in favor of a literal frozen tundra. Forecasts for Tuesday are calling for about 8 inches of snow and temperatures around 10 degrees Fahrenheit at kickoff. On top of that, Edmonton has about a third of the Mexican-Canadian population compared to Vancouver, Toronto or Montreal. It will be a very pro-Canada crowd — a cold crowd — but that’s sort of the point.
🍁Edmonton!🍁 We're heading toward a historic night at Commonwealth Stadium! More than 50K tickets are now out. Don't miss out!!
Be there: https://t.co/d4ypejSKYC#CANMNT #WCQ #ForCanada pic.twitter.com/m4dwoW1KcN
— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) November 15, 2021
And when you look at the Edmonton selection in the context of Mexico, it’s a pretty phenomenal response to El Tri’s go-to host stadium of Estadio Azteca. Teams are forced to play Mexico at altitude while also dealing with pollution, humidity and 100,000 screaming fans at Azteca. If Mexico can utilize that homefield advantage, good on Canada for returning the favor with what it has at its disposal: Edmonton in freaking November.
Así lucía el Commonwelath Stadium en Edmonton esta mañana. Anoche México no pudo reconocer el terreno. Habrá 50,000 personas esta noche, con sensación térmica de – 16° y nieve.
Estas son las eliminatorias de CONCACAF. 🇨🇦🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/sAX9Dn5eEw
— Alessandra Mezquita (@alemezquita) November 16, 2021
Look at them. El Tri looks so miserable and they haven’t even left the bus there. Well played, Canada. Really, well done.
You shouldn’t be surprised if the U.S. chooses host cities like Minneapolis, Salt Lake City or Kansas City for its January, February and March qualifiers either.
It’s the CONCACAF way.
