'It's unbelievable': Soccer fans in N.L. ready for Canada's next World Cup moment

'It's unbelievable': Soccer fans in N.L. ready for Canada's next World Cup moment

Canada faces off against Morocco at 2:30 p.m. NT Saturday

Bernie Manning, owner of the Trinity Pub in St. John's, remembers watching and cheering for Canada's national men's soccer team in the smallest of matches.

Now, that team is getting ready to play in the Round of 16 at FIFA World Cup 2026.

"It's a lifelong dream, really. Me and my two good friends who are involved in soccer still to this day have sat here in the pub through thick and thin watching Canada play Martinique and playing Granada," Manning told CBC News Friday.

"Now we're getting to watch our team play at a home World Cup and be successful. It's unbelievable. Our group of three has now grown to 160 people."

Fans are expected to line the pub for Canada's Round of 16 match against Morocco on Saturday. The match kicks off in Houston at 2:30 p.m. NT.

Canada defeated South Africa in the Round of 32, and will now compete against the sixth-highest ranked men's team in the world. Canada is ranked 30th.

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"It's certainly going to be a major task, but that's why you play the game. You know on paper, we're not supposed to compete," he said, referring to the team's underdog status, "but I'm sure they'll have the competition legs going tomorrow."

He expects a lively crowd for the match on Saturday, estimating those who want a seat in the pub should arrive no later than two hours early.

Fans in central Newfoundland are also excited for kickoff, and say the World Cup is bringing the energy to local pitches.

"For us to be at the Round of 16, it's almost unbelievable," Daynen Sheehy, president of the Gander Revolution Soccer Association, told CBC News earlier this week.

"There's a lot of side chatter now around soccer now because of the World Cup, something that we didn't have in previous years ... It definitely is filling the tanks of a lot of young kids here."

Dana Langdon, secretary for the Exploits Soccer Association in Grand Falls-Windsor, said she too can feel the excitement building.

"[Kids are] just really excited about soccer. You're seeing people wearing jerseys," she said.

If Canada were to win the match, their next match in the World Cup quarterfinals would be against either Paraguay — who upset Germany in the Round of 32 — or FIFA World Cup 2022 runner-up France.

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Alex Kennedy is a reporter with CBC Newfoundland and Labrador based in St. John's. He previously worked with CBC N.L. in Corner Brook, and has a particular interest in stories about sports and interesting people.

With files from The St. John's Morning Show