With the entire pitch covered in a red carpet, decorated with a huge golden ball in the middle, Toronto Stadium hosted the second opening ceremony of the 2026 World Cup.
In fact, in the World Cup with the round of 32, nothing like the opening 2/3 party.
As happened the previous day, at the opening in Mexico City, the initial part of the event lasted little more than 15 minutes, worthy of a halftime show. However, in a stadium that was far from full, the Canadians reinforced elements of their history, represented by the country’s indigenous people and maritime ornaments.
In the musical part, the main name announced, Alanis Morissette, did not appear (“isn’t it ironic”, someone would sing) — the rocker from Ottawa was reserved only for the Canadian anthem.
But there was no shortage of local artists, starting with William Prince and singer Alessia Cara — wearing a stylish red tracksuit from the brand competing with the manufacturer of the Canadian team’s uniform.
Then, Jessie Reyez, Nora Fatehi, Bengali DJ Sanjoy, French Vegedream and Palestinian singer Elyanna also appeared.
During the presentation, the golden ball rose up, revealing the shape of the official World Cup cup.
Without Shakira and the excitement of the Mexican fans, the party was as correct as the famous champion parades of Imperatriz Leopoldinense — but, like them, it didn’t lift those present on the ball catwalk.
For the World Cup, Toronto Stadium had its capacity slightly reduced from 45,000 to exactly 43,036 seats.
In total, the stadium will host 6 of the 13 World Cup games that will take place in Canada, including the home team’s debut against Bosnia and Herzegovina — the other 7 will be in Vancouver. Qatar and Switzerland complete Group B.
