The Beautiful Game

Canada’s first games are Monday when they play Ireland and Cambodia. The next two games are on Tuesday against Mexico and Romania.

Teams for the Homeless World Cup play a brand of indoor soccer, with six players on the floor at a time and the walls in play. Only two defenders are allowed in the defensive zone which ensures that the play is fast paced, with plenty of goals.

The competition itself  is divided into three stages. In the preliminary stage the teams play a single round robin. At the end of the round robin the top 3 teams from each group are placed in section 1, and the other teams going into section 2. In the second phase of the competition there are 8 groups of six teams each with 4 groups in each section.

After the secondary phase of competition, the teams are split one more time into 6 groups of eight based on their results, and a final, championship round is played with a trophy available for each group.

The current Homeless World Cup roster for Rio is:

Manager Sarah Blyth

The team has faced many challenges in its effort to get to Rio, in addition to the fundraising challenges the process of getting visas and passports has been very challenging. Many of the players lacked original ID. One player had to take a driver's test 3 times in order to get a second piece of ID so that he could get a passport. The whole process of getting visas and passports was made possible through Leo Cooper's tireless efforts.

The team departs September 15th and a sendoff is being planned. People and organizations from around the community continue to support the team. Vancouver Whitecaps President Bobby Lenarduzzi invited the team to the Whitecaps Game against Puerto Rico Islanders on September 5th.

Canada’s players in the annual Homeless World Cup take off for Rio de Janeiro in less than a month.

The team, made up of 5 players from Portland FC (named after the Portland Hotel) and 3 players from another DTES team, the Sun Eagles, is preparing for the annual tournament which is being held in Brazil this year beginning September 15. More information about this year’s tournament can be found at the Homeless World Cup website.

Before the practice began I chatted with Patrick, who, along with goalkeeper Kevin (who was absent today), was elected captain of the team on Sunday. Many of the team’s players, like Patrick, have not travelled outside of Canada. Patrick had just received his first passport and he told me that it looked good.