On June 12, 2012 I watched Canada play to a goalless draw vs. Honduras at BMO Field amid another failed World Cup qualification bid, begging Canadians to go support their national team - or at least pay attention.
Exactly 14 years later, I watched Canada host a World Cup game at BMO Field.
Decades of futility made it feel unattainable; every trip to San Pedro Sula, more impossible. Every missed Tosaint Ricketts sitter, more insurmountable.
It wasn’t just Ricketts. It was Tomasz Radzinski. Ali Gerba. Issey Nakajima-Farran. It was Josh Simpson, Simeon Jackson, Olivier Occean, Tesho Akindele, Manjrekar James, Andre Hainault, and so many others. Loyal soldiers, but those were the dark ages. We’ve made it through to the other side and I couldn’t be more excited for the future of soccer in Canada.