Toronto’s World Cup split-screen ended with Canada out after a 2-0 last-16 loss to Morocco in Houston, Texas. At the Wheatsheaf on Saturday lunchtime, the Canada viewing drifted from noise to soft applause after the final whistle.
The crowd had packed the bar to standing room only, with an Irish GAA group among those watching. Tani Oluwaseyi forced a stop from Yassine Bounou in the first half, but Azzedine Ounahi scored five minutes into the second half and Alphonso Davies did not enter the match.
Wayne Gretzky on the screens
Wayne Gretzky appeared on TV screens in the Wheatsheaf and was booed by the crowd. That reaction fit the day in Toronto: Canada had co-hosted the World Cup, yet its knockout match was played far away in Houston, while the city’s public viewing spaces carried the weight of the exit more than the team itself.
The co-host role did not deliver a home-city knockout match, and that disconnect was obvious at the bar. The fans stayed for the full 90, but the mood never broke into a rallying point after Ounahi’s goal, and the quiet finish said more than any postmatch speech could.
Portugal draws Toronto crowds
Portugal’s squad arrived in Toronto ahead of its last-32 match with Croatia, and the city treated the visit like a rare event. Hundreds of fans pulled over on the highway to see the team bus, police shut down a portion of the road for one hour, and supporters camped outside training sessions and downtown pop-up events.
Fans also gathered outside Portugal’s hotel for three days, where Cristiano Ronaldo waved to supporters from the hotel. One woman told reporters, “As they were leaving the bus, we caught the back of his head and the backpack” and added, “It’s amazing, it’s a once‑in‑a‑lifetime opportunity.”
Saturday in Toronto
Portugal fans turned up in large numbers when the team left Toronto on Saturday, and that turnout made the contrast sharper. Toronto gave Portugal the kind of street-level attention that Canada’s own World Cup run could not fully convert into a home advantage, leaving the city with noise, traffic, and a finished campaign rather than a knockout-stage stage of its own.
