Canadian men to host Uzbekistan in June 1 friendly in Edmonton ahead of World Cup

By Canadian Press on January 14, 2026.

Canada will host Uzbekistan on June 1 in Edmonton as part of its final preparations for the FIFA World Cup.

The game at Commonwealth Stadium will be the penultimate warm-up for the 27th-ranked Canadian men. Jesse Marsch’s team will wrap up its preparations with a game in Montreal against a yet-to-be announced opponent in the June 1-9 international window.

It will mark Canada’s first game in Edmonton since an infamous 2-1 frigid win over Mexico in a November 2022 World Cup qualifier before 44,212 hardy fans.

According to Environment Canada, the game time temperature was at minus-9 C, with a wind chill of minus-14 C. Canadian defender Sam Adekugbe went viral after throwing himself into a snowbank after Cyle Larin scored to give Canada a 2-0 lead.

Co-host Canada opens World Cup play in Group B on June 12 against a European qualifier in Toronto before heading west to host No. 54 Qatar and No. 17 Switzerland on June 18 and 24, respectively, in Vancouver.

Uzbekistan, ranked 50th in the world, will make its World Cup debut this summer in Group K alongside No. 6 Portugal, No. 13 Colombia and the winner of an Intercontinental playoff featuring No. 56 Congo DR, No. 70 Jamaica and No. 150 New Caledonia.

Uzbekistan, known as the White Wolves, is coached by former Italian star defender Fabio Cannavaro, a four-time World Cup participant and 2006 winner. Cannavaro took over from former Uzbek international Timur Kapadze in October after the team had qualified.

Uzbekistan had come close previously to qualifying but fell just short in continental qualifiers for both Germany 2006 and Brazil 2014. It booked its ticket by finishing runner-up to Iran in its third-round AFC qualifying group, finishing above the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kyrgyzstan and North Korea.

It will mark the second time Canada and Uzbekistan have faced off. The Canadian men defeated Uzbekistan 2-1 in June 2016 a friendly in Bad Waltersdorf, Austria.

“This match is an opportunity to connect with fans in Western Canada and showcase our team as we build toward the biggest tournament in our history,” Marsch said in a statement. “We’ve been serious about saying that this is the People’s Team, and we can’t wait to play in front of some of the best sports fans in the country.” ​

Marsch is currently holding a camp for out-of-season players in California ahead of a friendly Saturday against No. 94 Guatemala in Los Angeles. It’s the first meeting between the two since the Central Americans knocked Canada out of the Gold Cup in a quarterfinal penalty shootout in Minneapolis last June.

After the Guatemala games, Canada’s next outings will be in the March 23-31 FIFA window with opponents and locations yet to be announced.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 14, 2026

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press