Canadian Women's National Soccer Team to face USA at BC Place in November
Fans in Vancouver will get another chance to see Christine Sinclair and the Canadian Women’s National Soccer Team on home soil once again this November.
And this time, they’ll be facing their arch rival.
Canada hosts USA at BC Place on November 9 at 7 pm, with tickets going on sale July 5 at 10 am through Ticketmaster.
Canada last hosted a match at BC Place in February, with 22,508 fans filling the stands for a friendly against Mexico. Expect a much larger crowd this time around for the Americans.
Not only will local fans be fired up for a match against USA, there’s the possibility of a number of traveling fans from south of the border as well. Remember that USA matches at BC Place were packed with visitors during the World Cup in 2015.
As part of the deal, Canada will face the Americans twice, with a second match coming three days later on November 12 hosted by the US.
“There is always a friendly rivalry with the USA and it’s also hard to forget London 2012 – that memory sticks with you,” said head coach John Herdman. “But what this match offers us, at near the beginning of our four-year cycle, is a chance to get another true tier one test with a young team. By the end of this year we will have played the Olympic Gold and Silver Medallists and the world’s number one team, so this match will really give us a good indication of where our gaps are, two and three years out from the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019 and Tokyo 2020 Olympics.”
Canada has successfully transitioned to the next generation, with a number of young players making an impact. Sinclair, who is in the twilight of her career at age 34, is still the team’s best player but she doesn’t have to put the team on her back anymore.
“It’s a good opportunity for this new generation, including (Jessie) Fleming, (Ashley) Lawrence, (Kadeisha) Buchanan and young (Jordyn) Huitema, who have not experienced the USA too often in their international careers, to go out with a fresh perspective and positive mindset,” Herdman added. “We are only three spots back from them, with three close matches in our recent history, and these players have been accustomed to accustomed to success. It’s exciting.”
With Canada recently moving up one spot in the FIFA world rankings to No. 4, the dream of one day becoming No. 1 is within their sights. A chance to play the top-ranked Americans should give them an idea of how close they are to achieving that goal.
Canada has not beaten the US since 2001, but the back-to-back Olympic bronze medallists have momentum on their side.
“When I was a rookie it would have been hard for me to say at 16 years old that we want Canada to be number one because that was not realistic, but that’s what we are driving towards now and it’s completely realistic and within our grasp,” Sinclair, Canada’s captain, said. “Obviously, I have always wanted this team to improve on the world stage and to be able to say we want to be number one is something I never thought would be possible, but now it is.”
Sinclair also has another goal within her reach, and that’s the record for most goals scored in international soccer. The Burnaby product has 168 goals in her career, ranking her second all-time, just 16 behind the now-retired Abby Wambach.
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