Soccer Canada confirmed Friday that the Canadian women’s soccer team will face Brazil in Montreal and Halifax during the FIFA international window later this month.
The friendlies, scheduled for October 28 at Saputo Stadium and October 31 at Wanderers Grounds, follow the Canadians’ 4-1 aggregate goal win over Jamaica last month in an Olympic qualifying match under the round trip format.
“We are excited to officially launch our new Olympic journey against Brazil, a team against whom we have a rich Olympic history,” Canada coach Bev Priestman said in a press release. Playing at home again in front of our fans will be the ideal step to give us momentum and build towards the Paris Games in 2024.”
The Canadians, ranked 10e world ranking, beat Brazil 2-0 in their last meeting, in February in Nashville, during the SheBelieves Cup.
Canada is 12-10-7 against the Brazilians. Two of these victories were obtained in shootouts, including one in the quarter-finals of the Olympic tournament at the Tokyo Games, before the representatives of the maple leaf won the gold medal.
Brazil, returning from an eight-day training camp in September, has already announced its 24-player roster, which includes Marta, Kerolin, Debinha and Adriana.
Just like the Canadians, the Brazilians were quickly eliminated from the Women’s Soccer World Cup this summer. They failed to reach the knockout stage, finishing third in Group F.
Coach Pia Sundhage resigned from her position after the World Cup and Arthur Elias took over.
Elias led Corinthians to four Brazilian championships and two Copa Libertadores titles.
We have to go back to October 2021 to note the last time the Canadian team played a match in Montreal. She then defeated New Zealand 1-0 during their celebration tour after the Tokyo Games. The last time the Canadians played a game in the Maritimes was in May 2012, in a 1-0 victory over China in Moncton.