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Canadian fans making their presence felt at the World Cup

Loud and proud to celebrate the team’s return to the men’s soccer showcase for the first time in 36 years.

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DOHA, Qatar — The day after Canada’s World Cup opener, defender Kamal Miller was still marveling at the loud and proud Canadian delegation at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium.

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A crowd of 40,432 seemed full of Canadians celebrating the team’s return to the men’s soccer showcase after a 36-year hiatus.

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“It was incredible,” said Miller. “I was surprised just to see how many travelers we had and how many Canadian flags. It was hard to find Belgian fans.

“Soon, they carried us through the entire game. From the first time we took the pitch, from the warm-up to the reception, ‘Oh Canada’ was blaring throughout the stadium. It gave us all goosebumps. It honestly felt like a home game, I felt like there was a twelfth man. ”

Coach John Hardman added, “They were great.”

And resourceful in planning the 10,000+ km journey to Doha.

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After a 0-1 loss to world No. 2 Belgium in the opening game, fans’ next chance to cheer for their team is when world No. 41 Canada face No. 12 Croatia at Khalifa Stadium on Sunday. If they lose, Canada will be eliminated from the qualifying round.

Even without a team to support, Canadians have long been enthusiastic participants in the men’s World Cup. Canada was the top non-participating FIFA member association in terms of ticket sales for her 2010 tournament in South Africa, and was ranked in the top 10 for the 2014 tournament in Brazil.

In 2010, Canada ranked 7th among all countries, participating or not, with 17,493 country of residence ticket sales. 22,942 in 2014 put him in 11th place in global sales. Four years ago in Russia she was 17th with Canada at 18,131 for her.

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Global Affairs Canada estimates that 20,000 to 25,000 Canadians will be in Qatar for this World Cup.

There are several ways to get tournament tickets, but this time the Canadians are benefiting from an invitation to the party.

For matches involving Canada, Canadians had access to 8% of the stadium’s “purchasable quota.” This is what remains when tickets allocated to FIFA, sponsors, media, etc. are taken out.

Fans can also take their chances with FIFA’s worldwide ticket draw.

The Canadian Quota covers what FIFA calls the PMA (Participating Member Association) Football Community Quota and the PMA Supporters Quota.

At Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, the Canadian football community, including the team’s so-called friends and family, was behind the Canadian bench. Many of the Voyagers supporter groups were in rows of seats in the opposite raised corner.

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Sandra Gage, Chief Marketing Officer of Soccer Canada, said of FIFA’s blueprint for stadium tickets:

Hardman, who had his wife and two children two rows behind him at Wednesday’s game in Belgium, later recalled how he made eye contact with his 18-year-old son, Jay. New Zealand) when Canadian midfielder Stephen Eustakio nutmegged Belgian star Kevin De Bruyne.

“It was a great moment to share that moment with my son,” said the Canadian coach.

“I understand the impact this is having on people,” he added. “His wife showed me pictures of the fans leaving the stadium, which means these will be some great memories and I am honored to be a part of it.”

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So did Miller, who was in tears on “O Canada.”

“During the national anthem, all the emotions hit me,” he said. “How we got there. When comparing many stories of our team to others in the tournament, we think he’s probably one of the teams with the most unconventional route to the World Cup. .

“Just seeing my family there, making eye contact with my mom and dad, all the emotions hit me and[I was]in that moment being Canadian and representing my country.” Thank you.”

Canadian star Alphonso Davies also has parents here. Captain Atiba Hutchinson had her brother and sister in the stands.

Like most national associations, Canada Soccer has an official supporters group that provides access to tickets.

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Called Canada Red, the Canadian program currently has nearly 100,000 members and is split into three tiers: Canada Red (free), Canada Red and White ($50/year), and Canada Red and Gold ($150/year). divided. Her two top tier additions were made earlier this year, just before Canada qualified for the World Cup.

Canadian Soccer promises that every dollar raised will be “reinvested into the Canadian Soccer Program to benefit development initiatives across the country as well as the national team.”

Canada Red Members received a unique code to enter the ticket draw of stock reserved for Canada as a participating country. In a random draw conducted by Canada Soccer, Canada Red and Gold were given ‘first priority’, followed by Canada Red and White, followed by Canada Red.

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In developing the programs and infrastructure needed to make the ticket pipeline work, Canadian Soccer studied the best practices of United States Soccer and the English Football Association.

But in any framework, it’s a numbers game where demand exceeds supply.

Those who purchased tickets with a PMA Supporter Code could choose between 250 Qatari Riyals ($91.85), 600 Riyals ($220.40) or 800 Riyals ($293.90) tickets.

Canadians who wanted a luxury VIP package were directed to FIFA’s Match Hospitality department.

Gage said the ticketing process went smoothly with FIFA’s help.

“In reality, we’ve hosted a World Cup in our home country before,” Gage said, referring to the 2015 Women’s World Cup and numerous FIFA Youth competitions. “So the FIFA ticketing process is nothing new to us and we have hands-on experience managing that process.”

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Canadian Soccer has worked with the Men’s Players Association on a friends and family package as part of ongoing labor negotiations with the men’s and women’s teams.

Canada Soccer staff have been deployed to support the program providing access to accommodation, air travel assistance, ticket access, Canada Soccer House and local excursions.

Gage says he has about 275 so-called friends and family in Qatar.

Friends and family will be picked up at the airport and taken to their accommodation. On match days at the stadium, there is a dedicated entrance.

“It’s really concierge-level service,” says Gage.

They can access accommodations available through FIFA at locked-in room rates that are better than what they would pay on the open market.

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“Basically, it’s about taking the system that we built to support them and bringing it to Doha,” Gage said.

Canadian Soccer will offer the same program at the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

Friends and family can also access a dedicated section of Canada Soccer House, an outdoor space with a pool on the 5th floor of the Hilton Pearl Doha. A place to hang out, watch games on the big screen, eat and drink.

Otherwise, the fee to visit the Canada Soccer House is $249 for adults and $99 for children. This includes up to 7 drinks and ‘gifts’ per adult.

“We basically do it on a cost-recovery basis,” says Gage.

The space, which seats about 500 people, is impressive at night, with an outdoor patio surrounded by neon buildings giving it a Las Vegas-like feel.

“At any World Cup, I think this is a job,” Gage said of setting up such a space. We have worked hard to ensure that our Canadian fans have a place to call home.”

The space will be vacated as long as Canada remains in the tournament.

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Canadian fans making their presence felt at the World Cup

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