Canada draws Switzerland, Qatar and spectre of Italy as World Cup groups revealed

The men’s World Cup draw in Washington D.C. was going well for Canada until Pot 4.

Instead of one of the weakest teams, Canada drew the winner of UEFA Playoff A, which will see favourite Italy, the 12th-ranked team in the world, compete against Wales, Bosnia, and Northern Ireland in March.

Canada had already drawn 17th-ranked Switzerland and 51st-ranked Qatar, relatively favourable picks in a field of more formidable possibilities.

But the spectre of facing Italy — in Canada’s opening game in Toronto on June 12 no less — left head coach Jesse Marsch grim faced in the semidarkness of the Kennedy Center, with his arms folded tight across his chest.

He had started to recover by the time he spoke after. He wasn’t upset about the challenge, he said. He likes to prepare, and now he won’t know his first opponent until March when the Italy and 21 other teams vie for the remaining six spots in the expanded 48-team tournament.

“I just didn’t want to wait to know,” he said. “Too bad, I’ve got to be a little bit patient. It’s a little awkward, but whatever. It’s the World Cup, man. Let’s get ready. Let’s get ready to go.”

It had been a nervy-enough morning already.

An enormous security perimeter was set up around the Kennedy Center. Dignitaries, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, arrived in their motorcades under heavy snow and the watch of heavier security, including an army of Secret Service agents.

In the hours before the draw, Washington D.C. was a city of sirens.

Come such a consequential afternoon — the precursor to the biggest sporting event on Earth — the tension only heightened. Co-hosts Kevin Hart and Heidi Klum, and FIFA president Gianni Infantino, tried valiantly to liven and lighten up the crowd.

“We want to have fun,” Infantino said, as though he needed to remind his audience to relax. “We want to enjoy.”

Finally, it was time for 48 balls, each containing a ribbon with a different team’s name, to start being drawn by a parade of iconic athletes, including Wayne Gretzky, Tom Brady and Shaquille O’Neal.

About 900 journalists from around the world watched, their country’s fates turning with every lot, each pick met with a chorus of cheers or groans. 

Canada, pre-drawn into Group B, was only in Pot 1 by virtue of being a co-host along with the U.S. and Mexico. By FIFA’s measures, the 27th-ranked Canadians would have normally been in Pot 3.