Canada and the 2024 Copa America

[JamboAl]

27 minutes ago, jonovision said:

An opportunity for bargain-hunting Canadian traveling support, perhaps. 

True.  But two things to consider:

1) buying randomly is okay and could be cheaper but then we don’t have a coordinated section of supporters and 

2) if you think that tickets could be a bargain, your airfare will not be.

[BearcatSA]

1 hour ago, jonovision said:

An opportunity for bargain-hunting Canadian traveling support, perhaps. 

Not if you need a first connection via Westjet at the moment.

[phil03]

4 hours ago, narduch said:

Venezuela's incentive for topping the group is avoiding Argentina. I will be shocked if they aren't our opponent.

I actually think they will be tougher than Peru or Chile. They are 4th in Conmebol WCQ. And for those that give ELO Rankings respect, they are currently 21, compare to our 32.

I do expect them to be thouger then Peru or Chile. However, I believe it will be a different game as they wouldn't need to slow us down at all costs, even if that mean risking exhausting even the patience of a conmebol ref in a game against a concacaf opponent. I'd expect a straight battle of skills and athleticism, which will be a welcome change!

Looking at their players and taking into account how our own ELO rankings has suffered from the off-the-pitch stuff last year I'd say we are pretty comparable to them. Pitch the referees in and they are the favourites but not massively so.

[CanadaFan123]

We have the bigger stars for sure but similar to Chile and Peru they have some wily vets and are pretty solid all around. 

[Unnamed Trialist]

2 hours ago, BearcatSA said:

Not if you need a first connection via Westjet at the moment.

As someone forced to spend last night in Calgary and buy another flight home to Van, I second that.

[TGAA_Star]

2 hours ago, CanadaFan123 said:

We have the bigger stars for sure but similar to Chile and Peru they have some wily vets and are pretty solid all around. 

Yeah that's true but hoping Venezuela gets a win or even a draw because then it ensures we get Venezuela 🇻🇪 in the quarters 

[Ed_S]

I wore my Holger's Heroes CSA T-shirt from 2000 to watch the game. Getting out of the group with a tie was a cinch with that baby!!!

[SoccMan]

Anyone have the TV ratings for the Canada Peru game on TSN ? I would imagine it’s too early to see what the TSN numbers were for Canada Chile , but wondering about the Canada Peru game .

[CanadianTraveller]

8 hours ago, JamboAl said:

2) if you think that tickets could be a bargain, your airfare will not be.

Dirt cheap from Western Canada. As low as $400. Round-trip. Canadian pesos. (YVR is a bit more.)

Alas...it's to Houston. Quick 400km drive, which for most Westerners is a short jaunt (speed limit 121kph). Someone has to be DD for the rental car; bus schedules/prices don't line up well and a train will arrive about 20 hours too late to catch your flight home.

Decent Venezuela turnout in Austin tonight in the heat; not enough to fill even the club seats @ Jerry World but it should offer a bit of atmosphere after the Mexicans tear up their tickets tonight. I was thinking 15,000 attendance Friday; should be much better than that if Austin is a preview.

Another ARG-MEX major tournament match? Glad I went to the first one. Five figures if the neutrals start buying for Houston. 

[JamboAl]

51 minutes ago, CanadianTraveller said:

Dirt cheap from Western Canada. As low as $400. Round-trip. Canadian pesos. (YVR is a bit more.)

Alas...it's to Houston. Quick 400km drive, which for most Westerners is a short jaunt (speed limit 121kph). Someone has to be DD for the rental car; bus schedules/prices don't line up well and a train will arrive about 20 hours too late to catch your flight home.

Decent Venezuela turnout in Austin tonight in the heat; not enough to fill even the club seats @ Jerry World but it should offer a bit of atmosphere after the Mexicans tear up their tickets tonight. I was thinking 15,000 attendance Friday; should be much better than that if Austin is a preview.

Another ARG-MEX major tournament match? Glad I went to the first one. Five figures if the neutrals start buying for Houston. 

So that means you’re going right?

[Unnamed Trialist]

5 hours ago, Ed_S said:

I wore my Holger's Heroes CSA T-shirt from 2000 to watch the game. Getting out of the group with a tie was a cinch with that baby!!!

Sure good luck charm, Ed.

Was a bit disappointed you've washed it though.

[CanadianTraveller]

Getting closer. Flight booked. Jerry World ticket next. I don't expect to pay more than $10 USD. I hear my Winnipeg friend is much more loyal to the cause.

Congrats on surviving another round of ticketing; best of luck for Friday. Let me know if you want some Arlington info. And if someone is as dumb foolish as I to head to Houston, send them my way for transport. Lots of good seats still available in the rental.

[CanadianTraveller]

5 hours ago, Ed_S said:

I wore my Holger's Heroes CSA T-shirt from 2000 to watch the game. Getting out of the group with a tie was a cinch with that baby!!!

Is this a thing? I'd rather wear my black on Friday, but if everyone's dredging the closet I'll join in. It's a tad yellow in two places though; don't want to be confused with the opponent.

[SthMelbRed]

So, can I just confirm with those that pay more attention to this stuff, the next game will be paid in a climate-controlled stadium? We'll be able to utilise a high press without having to worry about dying from heat exhaustion after 20 minutes?

[narduch]

7 minutes ago, SthMelbRed said:

So, can I just confirm with those that pay more attention to this stuff, the next game will be paid in a climate-controlled stadium? We'll be able to utilise a high press without having to worry about dying from heat exhaustion after 20 minutes?

Correct.

Only bad thing is the small pitch.

[CanadianTraveller]

It'll be so cool Canada will choose the black jerseys on Friday!

"The stadium includes a central plant providing 11,000-tons of cooling capacity..."

Which should take it from 41C to 38C. 😁

(Actually a thunderstorm might knock outside temp down to 26C for kickoff, not that it should affect the game.)

[JamboAl]

A very interesting article from the excellent Jon Arnold.  

https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/jun/30/expensive-tickets-empty-seats-and-brutal-heat-copa-americas-fan-problem

BTW, parking at AT&T Stadium will be $75, and there is no public transit in Arlington.  I’m not really selling this game for the casual fan, unfortunately.

 

[CanadianTraveller]

Park @ Globe Life, if you aren't marching from a bar. Smart pick is Lot M; cheapest @ $20 and closest to AT&T. Can book now if you wish: MLB Parking
Note: Rangers are playing @ 7 (Canada @ 8 ) so it'll be a little congested, but less than a Cowboys game.

Edited Monday at 03:23 AM by CanadianTraveller
Map, Baseball game

[Olympique_de_Marseille]

36 minutes ago, narduch said:

Only bad thing is the small pitch.

I thought they shrank all the other pitches in the MLS stadiums to match the small NFL stadium ones. Didn't someone post about that?

[CanadianTraveller]

17 minutes ago, JamboAl said:

BTW, parking at AT&T Stadium will be $75, and there is no public transit in Arlington.  I’m not really selling this game for the casual fan, unfortunately.

 

There is transit to Arlington, but mostly for solo travellers. For $6 out ($3 back) you get to Centrepoint/DFW station on Trinity Rail (think Go Train), followed by an 8 mile Uber/Lyft ($12?) to the stadium. Runs every 30 minutes; 45 minute ride. Last train back to Dallas @ 11 PM. But most will look to Uber and not sweat the surge pricing when compared to the parking rate.

And beer is affordable. $10 for a real pint, and for the Cowboys they sell water (aka Miller Lite) for $5.

[SpursFlu]

31 minutes ago, JamboAl said:

A very interesting article from the excellent Jon Arnold.  

https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/jun/30/expensive-tickets-empty-seats-and-brutal-heat-copa-americas-fan-problem

BTW, parking at AT&T Stadium will be $75, and there is no public transit in Arlington.  I’m not really selling this game for the casual fan, unfortunately.

 

I'm feeling like this article is a bit off base and unnecessarily negative. I do agree with the cost of tickets being outrageous. Overall attendance seems really strong to me. US doesn't have those mid range stadiums like Europe does and of course the easy travel in Europe is impossible to match. 

With all that being said.. crowds have been great, atmosphere has been great, games have been exciting. I personally find the Euro games a bit tough to watch after watching Copa because it feels so slow and formulaic compared to the ultra competitive, frantic style of Copa.

Edited Monday at 03:46 AM by SpursFlu

[CanadianTraveller]

33 minutes ago, JamboAl said:

A very interesting article from the excellent Jon Arnold.  

https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/jun/30/expensive-tickets-empty-seats-and-brutal-heat-copa-americas-fan-problem

 

Poor Alistair. Between the Europeans not watching games @ 4 AM and the Americans assuming they need evening matches in the Pacific time zone, there's no chance of his request being honored for WC26:

"“It can’t be a five o’clock kickoff,” Canada defender Alistair Johnston told the Star. “That’s the simplest one … It’s gotta be an eight or nine o’clock kickoff. Because honestly, it’s not even safe for the fans.”"

I doubt they'll even try to schedule indoor stadiums for daytime matches only; more important to show games back home at the right hour. 1PM/noon and 7PM/6PM kickoff in the east; 1PM and 7PM kickoff out west. 2PM in Mexico except for the host team's 2nd & 3rd matches - Monterrey might be the worst of all?

FWIW: The Welsh supporters were baking in the Qatari sun during a 1PM match and most of them stayed hydrated. Or were pre-hydrated? The fans will be OK in 26. The players...?

[gigi riva]

14 minutes ago, CanadianTraveller said:

Poor Alistair. Between the Europeans not watching games @ 4 AM and the Americans assuming they need evening matches in the Pacific time zone, there's no chance of his request being honored for WC26:

"“It can’t be a five o’clock kickoff,” Canada defender Alistair Johnston told the Star. “That’s the simplest one … It’s gotta be an eight or nine o’clock kickoff. Because honestly, it’s not even safe for the fans.”"

I doubt they'll even try to schedule indoor stadiums for daytime matches only; more important to show games back home at the right hour. 1PM/noon and 7PM/6PM kickoff in the east; 1PM and 7PM kickoff out west. 2PM in Mexico except for the host team's 2nd & 3rd matches - Monterrey might be the worst of all?

FWIW: The Welsh supporters were baking in the Qatari sun during a 1PM match and most of them stayed hydrated. Or were pre-hydrated? The fans will be OK in 26. The players...?

I can still remember USA1994 when Mexico played Ireland in Orlando Florida at  1PM EST time  and it was brutally hot. 

[JAVIERF]

W

Is there some rain on Friday ?  

[CanadianTraveller]

3 minutes ago, JAVIERF said:

W

Is there some rain on Friday ?  

Perhaps. But not on the pitch - indoor match.