Canada Soccer unveils new philanthropic programs, offers details on World Cup tickets

TORONTO - When not working with the likes of Drake, Eminem, Rihanna, Justin Bieber and Beyonce, award-winning Canadian producer Boi-1da describes himself as a soccer dad.

"She's 14. She plays OPDL (Ontario Player Development League) for Markham. She's really good," he said proudly. "I'm the soccer dad on the sidelines yelling. It's brought a whole new love to the game for me, just having my daughter be a part of it."

Boi-1da (pronounced Boy Wonder) has been charged with helped provide the soundtrack for Canada's road to the World Cup, in 2026 for the men's and 2027 for the women.

Boi-1da has been named Canada Soccer’s first "national teams music ambassador" and will oversee a program titled "Perfect Pitch" that will produce a World Cup-themed album with proceeds going to the Canada Soccer Foundation to benefit youth soccer programs.

It's one of two new philanthropic programs unveiled Monday by Canada Soccer. 

The second involves the Canada Red supporters' club, which is being revamped and enlarged — offering members several tiers to access tickets to Canada's 2026 World Cup matches.

Under chief executive officer and general secretary Kevin Blue, Canada Soccer has looked for ways to increase revenue — while attempting to renegotiate an improved deal with Canadian Soccer Business, which looks after marketing and broadcast rights for both Canada Soccer and the Canadian Premier League. Blue turned to donors for help in hiring both Jesse Marsch and Casey Stoney as the men's and women's national team coaches.

Blue, Marsch and Stoney shared the stage with Boi-1da, who was wearing an Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid jersey, in announcing the projects Monday.

"It's the first time I ever felt cool in my life, I think," Marsch joked about sitting next to Boi-1da.

"Honestly he reminds me of our players," the coach added. "Incredibly humble, proud to be Canadian. Really proud to use his platform to, I think, represent the country moving forward to 2026. This is going to be an incredible partnership."

Canada Red previously offered three tiers — the first free and the other two at a cost of $50 and $150 annually, respectively — with differing levels of access to Canada game tickets and other perks. Canada Soccer says it currently has a little more than 100,000 members in total across the three tiers.

The revamped Canada Red offers seven levels, from free to $5,000 annually. Each tier provides access to Canada Soccer’s ticketing allotment lottery for World Cup games featuring the Canadian men — the higher the tier, the higher the chances of securing tickets.

FIFA traditionally reserves a portion of each World Cup game's tickets for fans from the countries involved. This is Canada's method of distributing them. Canada Soccer also used a Canada Red tiered approach for tickets for Canada's games at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Canada Red, the new version of which launches in the spring, "directly supports" the Canada Soccer Foundation, according to Canada Soccer.

"By becoming a member of Canada Red, you are directly helping to build a legacy of excellence in soccer," Canada Soccer says on the promotion's website. "Your generosity will directly impact the lives of athletes, coaches, and communities across the country, ensuring that soccer in Canada continues to grow and thrive."

"With Canada Red, the more you give, the more exclusive benefits you unlock," it adds.

Canada Soccer’s allotment is for tickets to Canada matches only, including each of its three group stage matches. Canada Red members will also be able to request conditional tickets for possible Canada knockout-round games, which will only be issued if Canada advances.

There is no guarantee members will get tickets.

Each of the seven Canada Red tiers will be allotted some 14 percent of Canada Soccer's ticket pool. But Canada Red members in the top tiers will have the best chance to access tickets as they will have access to the first draw and each subsequent draw afterwards.

U.S. Soccer has a similar multi-tiered supporter membership program dubbed Insiders. It has eight tiers ranging from Standard Insider (free) to President Circle (US$10,000 a year) with perks to match.

The Canada Red program is separate from FIFA's ticket lottery, which traditionally has been open to all. But in the past, the FIFA ticket draw has been for matches generally rather than specific fixtures.

Perfect Pitch will be directed and produced by Boi-1da, whose collaborations have included Drake’s "God’s Plan" and Rihanna’s "Work."

Boi-1da was born Matthew Samuels in Kingston, Jamaica, and raised in Toronto.

Nominated for 19 Grammy Awards, he is to be honoured with the 2025 Juno International Achievement Award later this month in Vancouver for his contribution to the Canadian and global music scene.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 3, 2025.