Victor Montagliani on DroneGate, World Cup planning & state of Concacaf in 2024 🎙️

[@djknox2]

KJ I would like to hear about what the progress has been on soccer infrastructure development around Toronto for 2026. Is there a National Training Center in the works? Where will group teams have their camps? And will the BMO field expansion look Mickey Mouse? These are the tough questions I would like Victor to address...

[@djknox2]

My prediction for CONCACAF in 2026: 6 teams into the group stage, 4 teams into R32, 2 to 3 teams into R16, 1 into the QF and none into the SF. Ceiling would be 2 into the QF and 1 into the SF. In terms of probability of who will do best, I would rank CONCACAF teams as follows: 1. USA, 2. CANADA, 3. MEXICO and 4. PANAMA. Costa Rica and Jamaica are the other two likely qualifiers who will likely exit in the group stage. Canada's success will likely depend on whether they can win their group - which will pave a reasonable route to the R16, where it will depend on what level of competitor they will face. Winning their group stage will require a lucky group draw that avoids a very strong competitor from bowl 2, where teams could range from a world top 10 European side like the Netherlands or Italy, down to a team maybe ranked in the low 20s like Iran or Senegal. That's a big difference in the stiffness of the group-stage opponent. Victor's goal of 3 into the QFs and 1 into the SF is possible but in my opinion very unlikely. For Canada, the key is whether they learn to be more clinical when goal-scoring opportunities present. Thus far they are very bad at capitalizing. The US team just seems a little flat to me in 2024, but if they get all cylinders firing, I give them the edge over Canada to go the deepest. Mexico will put up a good fight but R16 is likely their ceiling.

[@djknox2]

The CANWNT got very lucky in Japan, and a little unlucky in Paris - that's the difference in what success was found. But they have been perennial disappointments in the World Cup. I doubt the Canadian women's pro league will survive - there just isn't enough interest in a country where sports fans have a lot of professional leagues to divide their attention. Victor should first focus on making sure the CPL thrives.

[@antoinecoulombe1726]

Strange noise there

[@ozone0009]

Calling it dronegate is such lazy journalism. Be better