The sporting world is one that never seems to have a dull moment. Sports fans in Canada certainly have a great deal to look forward to not just this year but in 2025 too.
It’s been two years since Canada won the Davis Cup tennis tournament. They lost in the quarter-finals last year and in September continue their bid to again win this men’s team event. To do so, they have to travel to Manchester in England for the Group Stage of the 2024 Davis Cup Finals.
Canada is due to be represented by Felix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov, Gabriel Diallo, Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. Of those players, all but Shapovalov and Raonic were part of the team that won the Davis Cup for the first time two years ago. They play in Group D with Finland, Argentina and the hosts Great Britain.
The target for the Canadian team will be to finish in the top two. That will see them qualify for the knock-out stages that are being held in Malaga, Spain between November 19 and 24. The group stage will give them a chance to get some revenge for what happened last year. That’s because it was Finland who ended Canada’s reign as Davis Cup champions with that quarter-final win.
Canada begins their group campaign against Argentina who have three players who are currently ranked in the top 40. That’s compared to the Canadian squad which only has Auger-Aliassime who’s currently ranked in the top 100. The Argentinian side has the edge in the doubles with two top 30 ranked players. This tournament is being played on an indoor hard court and that does give Canada a chance as their opponents are far better on clay.
Two days after that match against Argentina, it’s that revenge mission against Finland. The Finns will have Emil Ruusuuvouri and Otto Virtanen playing the singles. Canada will need to be wary of Harri Heliövaara who is currently ranked 11th in doubles.
Their final group match will be against Great Britain who are due to be represented in the singles by Jack Draper and Cameron Norrie. Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski will be tough nuts to crack in the doubles.
Qualification for the finals does look possible for the Canadians so another thrilling week in the knock-out stages looks to be on the way. Once that tournament has been completed, it won’t be long until the United Cup takes place in Australia. The January 2025 tournament sees both male and female players taking part. This year saw Canada exit in the group stage.
Betting on sport has become incredibly popular in recent years. That’s particularly the case in Canada where sites such as PowerPlay offer odds on sporting events at all times of the day. All the main sports are covered and you might be surprised to learn that professional wrestling is also in the mix.
WWE continues to be insanely popular, and they are now taking more of their top events to other countries. November 30 is definitely a date to put down in your diaries as that’s when one of their biggest and most historical events comes to Vancouver.
The Rogers Centre will be hosting ‘Survivor Series: War Games’ and it promises to be a show of epic proportions. First held in 1987, ‘Survivor Series’ has been held every year since and has provided so many special moments. No one will ever forget the ‘Montreal ScrewJob’ from 1987 involving Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels.
Known for its classic five-on-five matches, this year’s show in Vancouver is also due to include a ‘War Games’ match. This sees two rings being used and the action takes place inside a steel cage. Each team has five members who come into the cage at regular intervals. Originating in WCW, this is one of the most famous matches in professional wrestling and first used in WWE in 2022.
This year we expect to see the ongoing ‘Bloodline’ story continue. Roman Reigns recently made his comeback and is battling to again be recognised as the Tribal Chief and Head of the Table. Former friend Solo Sikoa has now taken charge and it’s an all-out war between him and Reigns with Jacob Fatu also making his presence felt. We can expect a massive match to be seen at the Rogers Center in November.
Other top WWE stars such as current Universal champion Cody Rhodes, CM Punk (who returned to WWE at last year’s show), Drew McIntyre, Canada’s very own Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens and Rhea Ripley are also likely to be highly featured on what is one of WWE’s biggest shows of the year.
The clock is counting down to 2026 when Canada is one of the hosts of the World Cup. That means the Canadians have automatically qualified for their second successive appearance in the finals. There are therefore no qualifying matches to be played but there are still some big matches for Canadian soccer fans to look forward to.
Two international friendlies in the USA are being played in September and they are against the other two countries who will be hosting the 2026 World Cup finals. First up, Canada takes on the USA on September 7 in Kansas City. They last met in the CONCACAF Gold Cup last year. That match ended 2-2 after extra time but the American team won the penalty shootout.
Three days after that match, Canada meet Mexico in Arlington. The two sides last met in 2021 (again in a CONCACAF Gold Cup match) drawing 1-1. After those two friendlies, Canada’s next major games are in November when the CONCACAF Nations League quarter-finals take place. With more friendlies to be played in 2025, an exciting time lies ahead for the Canadian team.
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