Alphonso Davies says that he’s been inside of Commonwealth Stadium three times in his life; there were Women’s World Cup matches that he watched. The other time was for a Grey Cup.
“I was there for a Grey Cup. I was there for five minutes and then I had to go home. I have no idea how I got in there because I had no ticket,” Davies told reporters Thursday morning. But he recalls that he only stayed for five minutes because “it wasn’t that interesting to me.”
The stakes will be very high when Davies will make his homecoming for World Cup qualifying matches Nov. 12 and 16 against Costa Rica and Mexico. Canada is looking to qualify for its first men’s World Cup since 1986, and two wins would go a long way to send the team to Qatar. Tickets are selling fast, and more than 40,000 fans are expected for each match.
But, there’s more at stake in these two games than qualifying spots for the 2022 World Cup; they may have an effect on the 2026 World Cup, as well.
Edmonton is one of the cities bidding to host games for the 2026 tournament, and FIFA officials will be at Commonwealth Stadium to witness next week’s games. Explore Edmonton has reached out to the Voyageurs, the national team’s supporters group, to discuss ways to make the atmosphere inside the stadium as loud and as festive as possible. Voyageurs members from across the country are coming to Edmonton for the games, and have events planned throughout the city before and in between the two dates. Basically, next week is soccer week in Edmonton — and the city will be watched by the world.
“Going forward, thinking that Edmonton (could) host the World Cup games, it puts a smile on my face,” the Bayern Munich superstar said. “It’s for the future generations, for players who play in the 2026 World Cup to tell their kids, and their kids will tell their kids. It sets us up for a lot more, something bigger than just 2026. It’s something that’s going to inspire generations and generations of young footballers.”
The current Canadian national side has not only Davies, but players such as Jonathan David and Stephen Eustaquio playing at the top levels of the game in France and Portugal, respectively. Cyle Larin and Atiba Hutcinson star in Turkey. Tajon Buchanan will finish this current season with New England of MLS and move on to play in Belgium in 2022. The women’s team has been producing poster-size idols for years — but now, it’s the men’s team that can inspire the kids playing for youth clubs in Edmonton and across Canada.
“At the time when I was in the youth setting, I never really had an idol on the Canadian national team,” said Davies. He admits that the Canadian men’s teams of years past “didn’t make it interesting to watch.”
But now?
“With the generation we have on the team, a lot of kids are looking up to us. A lot of kids want to be footballers and we’re excited. A lot of these guys have been on this (Canadian) team for a while and they will tell you themselves that this has been the best Canada has ever been. Definitely, kids will be more open to playing the sport in the future, now that they see that the country is doing well in major tournaments.”
Because of COVID-19 travel bans, Davies has not had the chance to get back home for the better part of two years. He said he misses his family and his friends, but with two big games ahead he also can’t get lost in the homecoming, The focus is on the matches.
That being said, he does really miss the West Edmonton Mall.
