The Canada men's national soccer team is experiencing a surge in fan support thanks to the Voyageurs fan group.

What's happening?

The Voyageurs have been leading marches through Toronto and Vancouver, with thousands of fans joining in. On Wednesday, they'll march to BC Place for Canada's match against Switzerland.

Showing support for players

The group will honour Canadian midfielder Ismaël Koné, who suffered a broken leg in last week's match against Qatar. They'll print out 3,000 copies of Koné's number 8 to display during the match.

The impact of fan support

The energy generated by fans at the marches has been palpable, with chanting, drumming, and waving flags. Voyageurs organizers have been leading the crowds in cries of 'allez les Rouges,' and call-and-response chants. The group's president, Rob Notenboom, says the goal is to show players that supporters 'have their backs 100 per cent.'

What comes next?

Wednesday's kickoff is at noon, and if Canada wins or draws, they'll play their round-of-32 knockout match on home turf in Vancouver. The Voyageurs were formed in Edmonton in 1996 to boost Canada's ultimately unsuccessful campaign to qualify for the 1998 World Cup. Membership grew when the men's national team qualified for the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022, and surged again as soon as ticketing began for 2026.