TORONTO – Canada Soccer has canceled a planned friendly with Iran in the face of growing criticism.
In a one-paragraph statement, the governing body gave no reason for the cancellation of the game scheduled for June 5 at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver.
But the idea of hosting the 21st-ranked Iranian team in the world has been on fire since it was first announced.
The question is whether Canada should host Iran because of the Canadians who died on Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 when it was shot down on January 8, 2020, minutes after taking off from Tehran, for a Iranian surface-to-air missile. The Canadian government says that among the 176 people killed were 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last week that the match “was not a good idea”, pointing the finger at Canada Soccer. The PS752 Flight Victims’ Family Association called for Canada Soccer to “cancel the match immediately.”
Association spokesman Hamed Esmaeilion, whose wife Parisa and young daughter Reera were among those killed on Flight 752, said in an interview last week. “What kind of friendship do we have with the Islamic Republic of Iran?
“We want the (Canadian) government to take them to international court. And instead, we humble ourselves for them … “After 28 months we see no sign of seeking justice here. We see no sign of bringing Iran to any international forum. And instead they invite the football team (Iran) here. “
Conservative MPs added their voice to Wednesday’s protest. And the prime minister said this week that it will depend on the Canada Border Services Agency whether Iran’s team can enter the country.
Iran’s match was to be the first of a two-match match in Vancouver. The Canadians open the CONCACAF Nations League A match against Curacao on June 9 before closing the FIFA international window with another CONCACAF Nations League match against Honduras in San Pedro Sula on June 13.
Canada, 38th in the world, and Iran are preparing for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar this November.
For Canada Soccer, the competition in Iran was a rare opportunity to test the Canadians against a team outside their CONCACAF confederation, which covers North and Central America and the Caribbean.
The Canadians have only played with two teams outside their region since John Herdman took over as coach in January 2018 – a 1-0 defeat to Iceland in January 2020 and a 1-0 win over New Zealand in March 2018.
The FIFA International window opens on Monday, with players arriving from their clubs around the world. They will now have extended training time instead of one match before the CONCACAF Nations League matches.
Canada has not played at home since qualifying for the World Cup in a 4-0 win over Jamaica at BMO Field in Toronto on March 27th. The Canadian men last played at BC Place in March 2019 when they beat French Guiana 4-1 at CONCACAF. League of Nations classification.
The Canadians led the final round of the CONCACAF standings with an 8-2-4 record. His last match was a 1-0 defeat in Panama on March 30.
Canada has a historic 1-2-0 record against Iran, winning the last game 1-0 in April 2001 in Cairo. Iran won 1-0 in the 1997 and 1999 matches in Toronto and Edmonton, respectively.
Canada opens the World Cup match on November 23 against No. 2 Belgium before facing No. 16 Croatia on November 27 and No. 24 in Morocco on December 1.