Caldwell on Spain's World Cup victory, Messi's greatness throughout the tournament, and what's next for Canada Soccer
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What were Steven Caldwell’s first impressions of hosting World Cup coverage in Vancouver and Toronto?
Brian Hayes, Jonas Siegel, Dave Feschuk, and a man you have seen on TSN more than anybody else in the last six weeks, Stephen Caldwell.
Thanks for having me, guys. And we got you back in here. I'm back. I'm back. Just can't get out of this studio. No, it's okay. It's been a great tournament, so it's lovely to be here and chat about it.
That Vancouver set, man. I remember asking you when I saw you downtown, because I had heard news.
months ago so you're not going to believe what this thing looks like was it jackpool plaza how cool is that like with the background and just being in vancouver for that long it must have been really fun yeah it was absolutely spectacular it was just such a beautiful set and obviously it was outdoors as well which is a nice thing you guys know what it's like being in the studio consistently if you're indoors and there's no natural light after a few days it gets you but yeah You had the mountains in the background, you know, you had the water, you had the seaplanes. And then as the tournament kind of went on at Jackpool Plaza, we started to get a crowd in front of us as well, which was really cool.
It gave a great atmosphere to some of the games there, especially Mexico, Columbia game there, a couple of other South American teams. Three, four thousand would come to the square, you know, to the plaza. It was so good. And we had such a great time in Vancouver. Was a brilliant host. Yeah, for every nation that was there. I know Canada played the two games there, but every nation was enjoying the city. It's such a beautiful city and a small footprint. So everybody was just crammed into that little 10 blocks, you know, in and around Granville. It was fantastic.
Yeah, it looked really great. I mean, our experience in Toronto, we were talking about it last hour. We had a blast here, of course. There were a lot of memories that came out of the World Cup, but what do you take from it now that we're through it? Now that you look back on it, what will be the lasting imprint for you?
Well, I think about it first and foremost from a Canadian point of view and I think we put on a tremendous show in Toronto and in Vancouver. I think back to what was it, probably five weeks ago when we were leaving Toronto after the Bosnia game, Kevin and I were getting a flight to Vancouver for the next day and We were sort of looking at each other saying, can it be better than that? That was unbelievable. We were a little apprehensive that Vancouver was going to feel the same way as it did in Toronto and we weren't disappointed. It was magnificent in Vancouver as well. First game that we had there, Australia-Turkey was fantastic. It was half and half in that stadium and it was great atmosphere and then
Canada played Qatar, of course, which was a special game. The goals reigned in and Canada played so well. And even that Switzerland game, the way that the crowd was trying to suck that ball in at the end of the game. So we were a little jealous when we watched Portugal-Croatia. We wanted to be back for that one. We watched it and we enjoyed it, but we were jealous that we weren't there in our home city. We had such a time in Vancouver. So the show that Canada put on really stands out to me, the way that we welcomed the world and we showed how hospitable we are as a nation, but also how much we love the game of football, soccer, whatever we want to call it. And I think that was the most important thing.
And then I think a little thing to add to that was probably the performances of some of the smaller nations. We were expecting Norway to be pretty good, but they were incredible, really added to the tournament, beat Brazil, of course. Cape Verde, well, the story of the tournament for me, the way that they played as a team and took Argentina so close in that knockout game. So many stories, so many great games and such a great experience to be part of.
And yet, you know, the best seem to always rise to the top in this tournament, right? There's never a fluke winner at the World Cup.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What were Steven Caldwell’s first impressions of hosting World Cup coverage in Vancouver and Toronto?
0:00–8:15
2
How does Caldwell describe Canada’s public atmosphere and hospitality during the 2026 World Cup?
8:15–16:02
3
Why does Caldwell call Spain the most complete team after the World Cup final?
16:02–20:45
4
What tactical reasons does Caldwell give for Lionel Messi being limited in the final?
20:45–24:56
Speakers
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