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I'm reporting from the Canada Soccer House in North Vancouver.

We're expecting a capacity crowd of 5,000 people here. The lineup to get inside snaked around the block before it even opened at 10 a.m.

The viewing area has filled up. A DJ is getting the crowd going as people eagerly anticipate kickoff. Many fans I've spoken with are extremely confident Canada will punch its ticket to the knockout stage.

Players on both teams were sweating as they took the field to warm up. The roof is closed at B.C. Place as it will be for all World Cup matches to ensure consistency for television broadcasts, according to FIFA. 

One of the biggest cheers from the crowd came when the stadium screen showed the tournament's top scorers with Canada's Jonathan David tied for fourth with three goals. His hat trick against Qatar has him tied for fourth in goals with Germany's Deniz Undav.

As Jan mentioned earlier, there has been an average of around three goals per game at this 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Canada (seven goals) and Switzerland (five goals) have contributed significantly to that, thanks to big wins over Qatar and Bosnia-Herzegovina, respectively. With coach Jesse Marsch cautioning against playing for a draw today, expect goals as both teams vie for top spot in Group B.

Who are the most likely scorers? On the Canadian side, the two main strikers finally seem to be finding their footing. Captain Jonathan David is fresh off of a historic hat-trick against Qatar, while Cyle Larin has scored in both of Les Rouges' 2026 World Cup matches.

For the Swiss, 20-year-old wonderkid scored twice off the bench in their 4-1 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina. Captain Granit Xhaka, Rubén Vargas and Breel Embolo could also find the next. All three of them have scored more than 10 goals for the European side, including a goal each in this tournament. 

When it comes to predicting the outcome of games at the World Cup, you could put your faith in star players, experienced analysts — or, perhaps, a goldfish. 

Swimbappe the goldfish is a Toronto addition to a long line of animals who appear to have had a knack for correctly picking the winners of World Cup games. 

For today's match, the little orange fish has predicted Les Rouges will pull off another win. 

How does he make his predictions, you may ask? 

"Then the side of the tank that he swims to is his prediction, and we lock that in, and we don't question him."

Glenn estimates Swimbappe has chosen correctly in about 70 per cent of the games so far — including Canada's win against Qatar last week.

Swimbappe's three-second memory also means "he's incapable of forming a bias," Glenn added.

"So his predictions are unimpeachable for that reason."

Canada's Niko Sigur cheered on by his Burnaby elementary school

I'm at a watch party at St. Helen's Elementary School in Burnaby, B.C.

I spoke to eight-year-old Nathaniel Silva who decided to wear a Koné shirt today to help pray for a fast recovery. This second grader's World Cup knowledge is elite – he can run down all of the World Cup winners in chronological order — and predicts a Canada win for 2026. 

Some people here aren't watching just for the big match. They're also celebrating former student and star footballer, Niko Sigur who was born and raised in Burnaby.

Ismaël Koné is here to cheer on his teammates. He arrived at the stadium walking on crutches as he heals from that brutal leg injury he sustained during last week's match against Qatar. 

Koné was brought onto the pitch in a wheelchair, as he waved at cheering fans in the stands. 

Fans at B.C. Place cheered on all the Canadian players as they came on the pitch for warm-ups, but the biggest cheer was definitely for Koné.

Andrew's comparison of this energized Vancouver street scene to the 2010 Olympics vibe for men's hockey is on par for sure; after Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in that historic gold medal game, the city went absolutely bonkers. I was in the streets gathering fans' reactions, and I have never high-fived so many happy people in my life. It seemed like hundreds!

If Canada can pull off a win today against the Swiss, the number of high-fives I receive (and give) will be my gauge of which era celebrated better.

I'm a producer based in Prince George, B.C., but today I'm in Vancouver as a fan of the Canadian men's team. I'm currently in the fan march to the stadium where we just sang a rousing rendition of O Canada. 

I haven't seen Vancouver like this since the 2010 Olympics on the weekend of the men's hockey gold medal final.

Like in 2010, I got FOMO watching scenes of celebration and decided fairly late to come down from Prince George to take on the vibes.

The streets are packed with noisemakers, flags and chants. There's a lot of No. 8 signs being held up for Ismaël Koné. At one point people chanted "Kone, Kone Kone Kone'' to the tune of the classic "Ole, Ole Ole Ole."

Other vibes: a station for free Ricola cough candies of Swiss origin was set up; Canadian fans were (jokingly) boycotting them.

Switzerland has also made some big calls in the starting 11, including in the midfield.

Rubén Vargas, Djibril Sow, Johan Manzambi and defender Luca Jaquez all step into the lineup, replacing Dan Ndoye, Fabian Rieder, Michel Aebischer and Silvan Widmer. 

The 4-3-2-1 formation — sometimes known as the Christmas Tree — sees Breel Embolo lead the line, while captain Granit Xhaka and Remo Freuler start in the midfield. 

Swiss mainstays Nico Elvedi, Manuel Akanji and Ricardo Rodriguez join Jaquez in the defensive four, and Gregor Kobel starts again between the sticks. 

Captain Alphonso Davies isn't in that starting lineup, but coach Jesse Marsch said he's likely to come on as a substitute. 

"We will evaluate what we need of him in the game," Marsch said yesterday. "I would like to get him into the match, for sure. And I think that he can have a big impact, both on us physically and football wise, but also mentally, psychologically, to have our captain back, our best player back in the team. I think this is a big factor."

The 25-year-old star left back injured his left hamstring in early May while playing for Bayern Munich in a Champions League semifinal and has not played since.

It was the latest in a long list of ailments that have kept him from appearing for the national squad since March 2025.

"He's in training, he looks great, he looks fit, he looks ready to go, excited. So, let's see how things go, but I expect him to play," Marsch said.

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