By Canadian Press

Canadian men to face Wales after Romania in September international window

Feb 19, 2025 | 9:04 AM

The Canadian men will play Wales in Swansea in a Sept. 9 international friendly, Canada Soccer announced Wednesday.

News of the game against the 29th-ranked Welsh comes one day after word that the 31st-ranked Canadians will face No. 38 Romania in Bucharest four days earlier during the September FIFA window.

“We’re excited to be playing another high-quality opponent in Wales in September,” Canada coach Jesse Marsch, said in a statement. “Most of their players are playing in the (English) Premier League and (second-tier) Championship which will make for an excellent test for our group.”

While Canada has never played Romania before, it is 2-1-0 all-time against the Welsh.

Canada won 2-0 and lost 3-0 when the two sides met in Toronto and Vancouver, respectively, in May 1986 ahead of Canada’s debut trip to the World Cup. The Welsh won 1-0 in Wrexham in May 2004

The Sept. 9 game will take place at Swansea.com Stadium.

Next up for the Canadian men is the March 20 CONCACAF Nations League semifinal against No. 19 Mexico in Inglewood, Calif., with the winner moving on to either the 16th-ranked U.S. or No. 36 Panama in the March 23 final.

Canada will also be competing in the CONCACAF Gold Cup this summer.

Wales begins 2026 World Cup qualifying next month in a group that includes No. 8 Belgium, No. 67 North Macedonia, No. 110 Kazakhstan and No. 204 Liechtenstein.

Like Canada, the Welsh have participated in two World Cups with a lengthy gap between appearances — 1958 and 2022 for Wales compared to 1986 and 2022 for Canada.

And like the Canadians, Wales failed to advance out of the group stage in Qatar, losing to Iran (2-0) and England (3-0) after drawing the U.S. (1-1).

Wales missed out on Euro 2024, losing a penalty shootout to visiting Poland in a playoff final.

Wales is unbeaten in six games (3-0-3) since Craig Bellamy, a former Welsh captain who played for Liverpool and Manchester City, took charge in early July. The Welsh defeated Iceland 4-1 last time out in November, winning promotion to the UEFA Nations League top tier.

The Welsh women’s side is coached by former Canadian international Rhian Wilkinson.

—

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 19, 2025

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press