VANCOUVER — A historic moment was tinged with disappointment for Canada at the FIFA World Cup.
The country earned its first-ever spot in the tournament's knockout round, but fell 2-1 to Switzerland in their group-stage finale in Vancouver on Wednesday.
“We’re still developing an understanding of what the best games are like against the best opponents that are, that are the most meaningful games," Canada's head coach Jesse Marsch said after the game.
"Switzerland is a very good team, a very experienced team, a very intelligent team, and I think that showed today. We need to continue to understand how to handle those kinds of opponents, how to handle those kinds of games, and we've got to do it quickly, because we're going to be in the knockout phase, which is exactly where we wanted to be."
Canada finished second in Group B and let a chance to play on home soil again slip away.
The Swiss took top spot and earned a round-of-32 match in Vancouver on July 2 against the third-place team from Group E, F, G, I or J.
Canada would have played in that game with a win or a draw Wednesday.
“It’s definitely a bit frustrating because that crowd's been so good for us, and it's kind of a letdown that we can't play another game in front of them," said right back Alistair Johnston.
"But at the same time, look, we're in the knockout stage of a World Cup. There's quite a bit of excitement with that right now. I was a bit disappointed, obviously, in the room, but, again, it shows how far we've come."
Canada will instead play a round-of-32 game against Group A's runner-up in Los Angeles on Sunday.
It's still a major step for a nation that entered the tournament without ever having claimed a point in a men's World Cup.
The Canadians started their quest with a 1-1 draw against Bosnia-Herzegovina on June 12 before thumping Qatar 6-0 on June 18 for a historic first victory.
After a disappointing loss to Switzerland, the Canadians must now turn their attention to vying for a first win in the knockout stage.
“With the knockout, things become a little bit more tender and important, because it's not like you can rely on the next game," said striker Promise David. "You got 90 minutes to gas it out and then secure a win and move on.
"So, obviously, we'd like to stay here in Vancouver and do that, but we came second. Oh, well. But I think there's a lot of positives to build on. And there were some negatives, but in the upcoming days, we'll hopefully fix that and be able to move on to the next stage properly.”
Marsch was forced to switch up his midfield against Switzerland after Ismaël Koné's leg was broken in two places during the win over Qatar.
The 24-year-old midfielder from Montreal was in the stadium Wednesday. He sat on Canada’s bench with his left leg bandaged following surgery.
The sold-out crowd of 52,479 cheered as he was shown on the big screen being pushed to the sideline in a wheelchair before kickoff.
Marsch also opted against starting his vice captain, Stephen Eustaquio, though the Los Angeles FC midfielder came off the bench for Mathieu Choinière in the 58th minute.
Asked after the game whether he could have been in the initial 11, Eustaquio said if he could have, he would have. He did not say what ailment kept him on the bench.
“To be honest, I think we did a solid game when it comes to numbers," Eustaquio said.
"Obviously, we felt that in some moments of the game of the first half the momentum was for Swiss. But at the same time, we defended well. And then we wanted to go after it in the second half, but unfortunately we conceded two goals. I think we finished well the game, we scored a goal, and we created some chaos in the last 10 minutes. Unfortunately it wasn't enough.”
Switzerland had the first real chance in the 11th minute when Breel Embolo launched a shot from near the penalty spot, only to see Canada ‘keeper Maxime Crepeau come up with the stop.
The rebound popped out to Manzambi, whose attempt was blocked by defender Derek Cornelius.
The Canadians came close eight minutes later off a free kick taken by Choinière. Winger Tajon Buchanan ticked the ball from just above the six-yard box and Switzerland goalkeeper Gregor Kobel got in the ball’s path.
There was some pushing and shoving in the 31st minute after Swiss captain Granit Xhaka went to kick the ball and caught Canadian striker Cyle Larin in the process. The two players shared a hug after Larin got up off the turf, but both were shown the yellow card.
Switzerland had a solid opportunity before the half with a free kick just above the penalty area, but Xhaka sent the ball sailing well over Canada’s net to draw cheers from the boisterous red-clad crowd.
Winger Ali Ahmed came within inches of giving Canada the lead late in the first half with a shot from inside the area. Kobel made a diving save to poke the ball out of harm’s way. Both teams headed to the locker room with the score knotted 0-0.
Switzerland's Reuben Vargas changed that just one minute into the second half.
Manzambi skipped the Sevilla midfielder a pass and Vargas put the ball in off the goalpost to give his country a 1-0 lead in the 46th minute.
Manzambi doubled the advantage 11 minutes later after Canadian defender Luc de Fougerolles missed a ball above the penalty area and then slipped, giving the 20-year-old Swiss midfielder time and space to send a right-footed shot in.
Marsch followed with a series of offensive-minded substitutions, including bringing David on for Buchanan in the 75th minute.
The decision paid off one minute later when Nathan Saliba chipped a cross over to the big striker. David made no mistake in driving a sliding right-footed shot in, cutting Canada’s deficit to 2-1.
With time ticking down, Marsch stood on the sidelines, pumping his arms in an attempt to hype up the crowd. They responded with chants of "Let's go Canada!"
Many fans were on their feet in the third minute of stoppage time as Johnston threw the ball in from near the corner flag. David received the ball on his head but sent the ball down and Kobel dropped to his goal line to deny the equalizer.
Stoppage time was "kind of intense," David said.
“You try not to look at the clock, because the more you look at it, the quicker time goes. But it’s garbage time," he said. "You have to just have to crash the box and get the crosses and make sure you make your chances happen, and put shots on target, and hopefully something falls. And we came really, really close.”
Bosnia finished third in the group after defeating Qatar 3-1 in Seattle.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 24, 2026
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
