RIYADH: As Canada prepares to co-host the FIFA World Cup, its ambassador to Saudi Arabia says the tournament will be not only a celebration of football but also a platform to deepen ties between Ottawa and Riyadh.

“It’s such an honor for Canada to be the host this year of the FIFA World Cup with our friends from the United States and Mexico,” Jean-Philippe Linteau told Arab News.

“The World Cup is the most important sporting event in the world.”

Canada hosted the women’s World Cup in 2015 and now turns its attention to the men’s competition, highlighting what the envoy described as its growing footprint in global football.

“Canada is already one of the world’s most open countries. We welcome the world. Our population is multicultural. You come to Canada, you find a whole world among Canadians,” he said.

“Hosting this event is just a natural extension of our welcoming nature.”

Linteau said fans traveling to Canada would enjoy a safe and fun experience and that the tournament would continue to promote the country long after the final whistle.

“We hope that the world will come to Canada … and continue to come for years after that because it’s a great way to showcase our country and everything we have to offer.”

The ambassador praised the Kingdom’s growing role in international sport and its transformation under Vision 2030.

“Saudi Arabia is not just influential in global football. I would say in global sports in general, including esports. What the Kingdom has done has been noticed all over the world,” he said.

Linteau said he remembered when Erin Routliffe and Gaby Dabrowski won the women’s tennis doubles title at the WTA Finals in 2024.

“I was very proud to be here in Riyadh for that,” he said, describing the event as an example of Saudi Arabia’s ambition to become a global sports hub.

He also congratulated the Saudi football team on qualifying for the World Cup and expressed hope that the two nations might meet later in the tournament.

“While the Saudi team is not going to play in Canada for the first round, we hope that we’re going to meet in subsequent rounds for some matches,” he said.

“When it comes to sports, it’s a natural convening mechanism.”

Linteau highlighted Canada’s support for developing sports in the Kingdom, particularly in disciplines where it has recognized expertise.

“In Canada, we have two national sports — lacrosse and ice hockey. In both those cases, Canadians have been in the Kingdom to support the establishment of these teams,” he said.

“We were very proud to be part of that. You can’t start being good at a sport … you have to crawl and then you walk and then you run.”

Sport was a powerful diplomatic tool, he said.

“It helps to build people-to-people ties. It helps youth and others to connect with each other, to meet and to share experiences,” he said.

With Saudi Arabia hosting an increasing number of international tournaments, Linteau said he expected more Canadians to travel to the Kingdom and witness its transformation firsthand and that the hoped more Saudis would compete and succeed on the global stage, including in Canada.

Feb. 15 marks Canada’s National Flag Day, which the ambassador said was “a day of unity, a day where we celebrate our flag.”

“The World Cup will also be an opportunity where we come together to support our national team under the same flag.

“I look forward to Saudi and Canada meeting together, hopefully, in the FIFA World Cup.”