Seven Bramptonians on Canada’s World Cup national team

The City of Brampton is home to seven players on the Canadian national men’s team including captain Atiba Hutchinson, on the World Cup roster.

Annie Auckbaraullee and Doron Jhirad own Brampton North Soccer Club, a family-run recreational soccer league. For Annie, soccer or football is in her blood, a passion she shares with the community.

“Brampton is home to a lot of these people and what familiarizes us is the love for soccer,” Auckbaraullee said.

According to a 2016 census, over 73 per cent of Brampton residents reported being visible minorities. A majority of immigrants hail from Southeast Asia and the Caribbean.

Taylor McKee who specializes in the sociocultural side of sports for Brock University says how Brampton players are coached may also play a part in their success, “more anecdotal evidence is that in Brampton you see a more a freer form of coaching where, you know, there’s a more diverse voices in terms of the way the games are coached.”

McKee says this World Cup for Canada will only add fuel to the fire for Bramptonians passion for the game with young players seeing firsthand that it’s possible.

Canada’s men’s national soccer team will play against Belgium on Wednesday.