Episode 735 – The AFTN Soccer Show (World Cup Fever Grips North America - Canada get first point, Scotland beat Haiti)

We’re back with another AFTN Soccer Show packed full of World Cup chat. After year of anticipation, excitement, and planning, with more than a few speedbumps and frustrations along the way, the 2026 World Cup is underway and the summer feast of football is in full flow. Five days in and we've had some fantastic matches, some great goals, a couple of surprises, and some great storylines. We delve into some of the main talking points so far with particular emphasis on Canada's 1-1 draw with Bosnia, their first ever World Cup point, and Scotland's 1-0 win over Haiti, their first World Cup win in 36 years. AFTN had the pleasure of being at both matches and we share some of our thoughts on the games and our experiences at the stadiums in Toronto and Boston. We also bring you some postgame audio from the Canada game as I catch up with former Whitecap Ali Ahmed to chat about getting his World Cup moment and coming back to play in Vancouver, plus we hear from Ismael Kone, Luc de Fougerolles, Max Crepeau, Joel Waterman, and Alistair Johnston about the game and what's next. All of this plus we give you some World Cup predictions, we wrap up our Canadian Soccer A to Z series, and music-wise, legendary Scottish band Deacon Blue continue their residency as our Artists of the Month and we've got another Scotland World Cup song in Wavelength. Here’s the rundown for the main segments from the episode: 01.20: Intro - a special couple of days 12.25: Canada's draw with Bosnia unpacked 42.00: Ismael Kone and Luc de Fougerolles postgame audio 48.50: Max Crepeau reflects on his first World Cup game 53.27: Ali Ahmed talks getting his World Cup moment and coming back to Vancouver 59.00: Joel Waterman's postgame thoughts 61.50: Qatar Preview 64.17: Alistair Johnston on Canada becoming a soccer nation 71.55: Scotland beat Haiti in Boston, as their fans take over the city 101.20: Canadian Soccer A to Z - Z 107.25: Some World Cup predictions 125.00: Wavelength - Nick Morgan - No Scotland, No Party (2026 version)