2026 World Cup: Canada vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina, probable lineups

The curtain rises on Friday evening in Italy for Group B of the 2026 World Cup—the group that, according to the draw, would have hosted Italy had it managed to qualify. Instead, as we all know, Bosnia and Herzegovina will take the field, facing Canada at BMO Field in Toronto at 9 p.m. Italian time (3 p.m. local time) in a matchup that is a first not only on the World Cup stage.

Canada, one of the three host nations, is making its third World Cup appearance, following those in 1986 and 2022, but is still seeking its first point in the tournament. Forty years ago, in Mexico, the Canucks lost all three of their Group C matches against France (1-0), Hungary (2-0), and the USSR (2-0), while in the edition preceding the current one, despite starting with significant ambitions, they still finished at the bottom of Group F after a 0-1 loss to Belgium, a 1-4 loss to Croatia, and a 1-2 loss to Morocco.

The Bosnia and Herzegovina national team, on the other hand, is making its second appearance, following its debut in 2014. Edin Dzeko, who is on the current roster, and his teammates at the time dashed any hopes of advancing to the knockout stage by losing 2-1 to Argentina and 1-0 to Nigeria, before securing a meaningless 3-1 victory over Iran. That victory over Team Melli was significant, however, as it was their first-ever win in the World Cup competition.

Probable lineups

CANADA (4-4-2): Crepeau; Johnston, De Fougerolles, Cornelius, 22. Laryea; Buchanan, Eustaquio, Koné, Millar; David, Larin. Head Coach: Marsch.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA (3-5-1-1): Vasilj; Muharemovic, Katic, Kolasinac; Dedic, Sunjic, Hadziahmetovic, Basic, Bajraktarevic; Alajbegovic, Demirovic. Head Coach: Barbarez.