Soccer4 reasons to love Canadian soccer in 2011

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Coach Carolina Morace, 3rd from left, will try to lead Canada to glory at the 2011 Women's World Cup. (Associated Press)

I have finally learned my lesson. Predictions can go horribly wrong.

In the late summer of 2010 I was told, in complete confidence and with absolute certainty, the United States would host the 2022 World Cup. The 'authoritative' source shall remain nameless to save him from any embarrassment.
 
Here's what we actually know. Barring a cataclysmic meteor strike, the sun will rise and set for the remainder of the year. I'm a journalist not a clairvoyant. 2011, however, has the potential to be a landmark year for soccer in Canada.
 
If you love the game, forgive me for preaching to the choir. If, however, you're still not sure whether you can be bothered to make the necessary emotional commitment, here are four good reasons which can make it worth your while.
 
The 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup
 
Hockey is not my game - it probably never will be. It's a culture you need to grow up with, and I didn't. However, I promised myself I would follow Canada's progress at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Win or lose.
 
I was immediately engaged. I became a fan and jumped around the living room as Sidney Crosby's overtime winner clinched the Gold medal. It's entirely possible Canada and the U.S. could meet again in the latter stages of the FIFA Women's World Cup.
 
The rivalry needs no artificial hype. Canada doesn't like the U.S., which continues to sneer at its northern neighbour. Canada, under Carolina Morace, is beginning to shed its inhibitions. The team is learning to win and think like winners.
 
The acid test is still to come. The CONCACAF title was won without coming into contact with the Americans. In Germany there will be no hiding place. The gap, though, is closing and the Americans are not unbeatable.
 
Christine Sinclair should be a household name in this country. That she isn't is a fallacy born out of mainstream media ignorance. History is waiting to be written about this extraordinary athlete and the team she leads. Crosby is a national treasure - Sinclair can make Canada proud again.
 
The Women's World Cup vote for 2015
 
Before Sinclair sets foot in Germany, Canada may have already scored an important victory. In early March we'll know if Canada has been successful in its bid to host the next Women's World Cup in the summer of 2015.
 
While Canada cannot even dream of staging the men's World Cup, it can compete for this event. Less than four years ago it impressed FIFA by staging the 2007 U-20 World Cup which drew healthy attendances and revenue to boot.
 
Canadian fans are not hard to find. The chance to stage a senior World Cup on home soil would help elevate the profile of the sport across the country and inspire the next generation of Sinclairs. The government is ready to back the bid and so should FIFA.
 
FIFA's much-criticized executive committee wants to take the game to emerging soccer nations. Canada seems to have spent its entire history emerging only to withdraw into its puck shaped shell. Guess what? It's OK to love soccer. The rest of the world supports its national team. Let's give it a go eh?  
 
The 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
 
And so the cycle is complete. Anyone feeling uncomfortable yet? The words Gold Cup and Canada are uneasy bedfellows. The missed calls, the accusations of anything but fair play seem to follow Canada to every edition.
 
Let's ditch the inferiority complex and turn up! This is an important event for Canada in the grand scheme of things. I don't expect Canada to win the Gold Cup but I do want Stephen Hart's team to prove to me it can truly be competitive against regional rivals.
 
Without other distractions, the U.S. and Mexico can field full strength squads. Hart must use this tournament as the foundation for World Cup qualifying. These are the teams Canada will have to beat to have any chance of reaching Brazil in 2014.
 
Canada must be brave enough to believe in long-term benefits. The next World Cup is a long way away so young blood must be given a chance to blend with, and eventually succeed, the old guard. Paul Stalteri, Richard Hastings and even Dwayne de Rosario must accept time is almost up.
 
The Vancouver Whitecaps
 
Committing to a team for the future has much to do with its past. As a fan, it is a source of pride that your chosen club has a trophy cabinet displaying its achievements down the years. When it comes to Canadian heritage, the Vancouver Whitecaps are in a class of their own.
 
Growing up in 1970's England, the game in North America was virtually unheard of with a couple of exceptions. The New York Cosmos, with the pulling power of Pele and Beckenbauer, nudged the needle as did the Whitecaps.
 
Vancouver produced players of quality. Bruce Grobbelaar and Peter Beardsley went on to enjoy glittering careers while veterans such as Alan Ball, Phil Parkes and Willie Johnston all had successful spells on the west coast. 
 
Those too young, or too far away, to remember the Whitecaps' halcyon days, are about to witness the latest incarnation of this famous club. There is great anticipation as Vancouver inches closer to opening its doors to Major League Soccer in a little over 10 weeks time.
 
MLS has made Vancouver wait many years for its chance to rejoin North America's elite. The Whitecaps' entrance into a League still lacking global credibility cannot come a moment too soon.   

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