With just over a year to go until the FIFA World Cup hits Canadian soil for the first time in 2026, Canada’s men’s national team is gearing up for a formative summer.
While Canada will look to win its second ever Concacaf Gold Cup, the national team also looks to important friendlies in Toronto ahead of the tournament against the Ivory Coast and Ukraine.
Canadian manager Jesse Marsch named his 60-man preliminary roster for the Gold Cup on Monday and will name the full 23-man squad at a later date. On Wednesday, he unveiled the 23-man roster for the friendly matches, featuring many top players as well as significant absences.
Among the key absences were center back Moïse Bombito of OGC Nice, left back Alphonso Davies of FC Bayern Munich, and Celtic FC right back Alistair Johnston.
Here are three takeaways from the friendly squad list.






