CSA confims WCQ Schedule

Earlier today the Canadian Soccer Association confirm what most of us were already assuming to be true.  That is that all 3 home games in the second round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying will be played at Toronto's BMO field.  The games are St. Lucia on Sept. 2, Puerto Rico on Oct. 11 and St. Kitts and Nevis on Nov. 15.  These dates and locations come as no real surprise since it had been speculated for weeks that the games would all be at BMO and following the drawing of the groups the dates had been released on the CSA site.  Now there is no speculation left and we all know how the road to Brazil is going to look for at least the first round of matches.


This news was greeted by a very mixed reaction by loyal fans across the country.  The fans in Toronto were of course very pleased by the news that all 3 games will be taking place in our back yard.  The issues came from the fans across the rest of the country who felt that this was some sort of snub to them and favoritism towards the GTA area.  I am not going to get in to the wild debates that were taking place on my twitter feed throughout the afternoon but instead I will try to lay out why I think that this is the best move for the national team and will actually help the team in the long run as well as the CSA.


1. BMO field is the only stadium in Canada that is good enough to host these matches.  It is up to date, has over 20 K seats, and most importantly it has a grass surface.  That along with the fact that having the games in Toronto puts it in the middle of Canada's largest population area increases the chances of getting a large pro-Canadian field.  Cities like Montreal, Edmonton, and Vancouver would also be more then capable of hosting a game but they do not have grass fields and at this stage putting down a temporary surface for one match is not worth the hassle that it brings, just ask Whitecap fans.


2. It is what the players want.  A lot of them are from the GTA area, they like spending time in the city of Toronto and again it comes back to the issue of playing surfaces.  If you did a survey of the players I guarantee that they would all say that playing on a grass surface is one of the most important factors.  The players are the ones who go out and play the game, not the fans, so it is key to keep the players happy since last I checked that helps them to play better.


3. It is the easiest thing for the CSA to do.  By having all the games in one city they have less to do in terms of making arrangements for player travel, training grounds, and promoting the games.  At this stage I think that anything that makes the CSA's job easier is a good thing since they have proven to struggle when they try and do to much.


4. Having all the games in one place will allow the Canadian players to develop a comfort level on the field and in the stadium which is a big part of a home field advantage.  That advantage might not be as crucial in this first round but if Canada is going to push far into qualifications then it will eventually be crucial.


5. This debate is not about what we want as fans.  It is about what is going to give the team the best chance of advancing to the next round and eventually moving on to the World Cup.  That means that we have to accept that it might not be convenient for some of the fans, it might not help to grow the fan base, and it may even make Toronto a bit more hated but at the end of the day none of that matters when this is a World Cup qualifying campaign.  At the end of the day this is not a fan making campaign and the best way for the CMNT to make new fans will be having success.  Who knows where the games will be in the third round but for now this is the best move.


For all those reasons I think that the CSA has done the right thing by placing all the games in Toronto.  IT is all about making the World Cup and this gives us the best chance to do that.  I will though admit that if the shoe had been on the other foot and all the games were in other places I would have been very annoyed so I understand how fans around the rest of the country are feeling.  All in how you look at it at the end of the day.