Both Panama and Croatia say tonight’s FIFA World Cup game in Toronto is a must-win.
Panama dropped its opening match to Ghana 1-0 in the Group L opener. Croatia also fell to England 4-2.
FULL COVERAGE:
- The GTHA has the largest Croatian community in North America. Tuesday’s World Cup stop in Toronto will be ‘emotional,’ fans say
- Panama, Croatia face must-win game tonight in Toronto
- Thousands of Croatia supporters could be coming to Toronto and bringing a 100-metre flag with them
Croatia, ranked 15th, enters tonight’s contest as the favourites to the Panamanian underdogs (ranked 40th).
This is the third World Cup game hosted at Toronto Stadium this tournament, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
CTV News Toronto and CP24 will have live updates leading up to and throughout the game.
Follow along here:
2 p.m. - Road closures in effect
The city has shut down much of the area surrounding Toronto Stadium at Exhibition Place and the FIFA Fan Festival at Fort York.
Lake Shore Boulevard West from Bathurst Street to British Columbia Road is now closed. This closure takes effect on all of Toronto’s game days, starting five hours before kickoff and ending three hours after the final whistle. Roads are expected to reopen at midnight.
Manitoba Drive and most of Strachan Avenue is also closed. Traffic between Dufferin Street and Strachan, north of the Gardiner Expressway, is limited to local traffic only.
Toronto police have said that additional road closures may take effect as fan marches get underway this afternoon.
In addition to the World Cup-related road closures, Bremner Boulevard is also closed between Lower Simcoe Street and Navy Wharf Crescent for the Toronto Blue Jays home game at Rogers Centre. That closure will lift at 8 p.m.
- Phil Tsekouras, CTV News Toronto Journalist
1 p.m. - More than 3,000 Panama fans expected at march
Toronto police say they’re expecting as many as 3,000 people to take part in the Panama fan march.
The group will meet at Trinity Bellwoods Park for 3 p.m. before marching south on Strachan Avenue. The march will end at Coronation Park.
Road closures will be in effect for the march and police said motorists should expect traffic delays in the area.
Last week, an estimated 5,000 Panama supporters marched to Toronto Stadium ahead of the team’s match with Ghana.
- Phil Tsekouras, CTV News Toronto Journalist
12:45 p.m. – Croatia fans spotted near Toronto Stadium
A handful of fans donning Croatia’s red-and-white checkers were seen outside Toronto Stadium hours before kickoff.
Most will head to the Toronto Event Centre, temporarily dubbed “Croatia House,” for a pre-party before the fan march at 5 p.m.
- Rahim Ladhani, CTV News Toronto Video Journalist
12:20 p.m. - Ghanaian fans set to take over Sankofa Square again
In other Group L action, Ghana will take on England at 4 p.m. in Boston, and fans of the African Black Stars are planning on taking over Sankofa Square a second time.
Members of the Ghanaian diaspora braved the rain and flooded the downtown square last week following Ghana’s victory over Panama in stoppage time.
“Just days after Ghana’s dramatic victory over Panama sparked celebrations that spilled into the streets around Sankofa Square and prompted temporary road closures, the Square is poised to come alive again,” organizers of today’s rally said in a news release describing today’s watch party.
The event starts at 2 p.m.
- Phil Tsekouras, CTV News Toronto Journalist
12:15 p.m. – Match appears to be sold out
Fans hoping to grab a last-minute ticket to tonight’s game might be out of luck.
As of 12 p.m., there are no tickets available for the match through FIFA’s official ticketing platform and only a single $805 seat listed for sale on FIFA’s resale platform.
There are still a small number of tickets available for purchase on other resale platforms but prices mostly start at $1,000.
The first two World Cup games in Toronto were not officially sold out, though they came close. Saturday’s Germany-Ivory Coast match was an official sold out, with more than 43,000 fans inside Toronto Stadium.
- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24 and CTV News Toronto
12 p.m. – ‘Picture perfect’ conditions for kickoff‘
“Picture perfect.”
That is CP24 Meteorologist Bill Coulter’s forecast for the conditions during tonight’s game.
After rain interrupted another match featuring Panama last week in Toronto, Coulter says tonight’s conditions will be decidedly better with sunny skies and no chance of precipitation.
“We are hitting a high this afternoon of 25 C and by game time at 7 p.m. it will probably be 23 C with a dry breeze out of the northwest. So it will be comfortable and that is great news for the players and for spectators, even if you are not at the stadium but at many of the watch parties around town,” Coulter says.
Environment Canada says that there will be winds of 20 km/h that will gust up to 40 km/h tonight, likely making it feel a touch cooler at Toronto Stadium than it otherwise would.
The temperature will dip down to a low of 14 C overnight.
- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24 and CTV News Toronto
11:45 a.m. – ‘Leave the drone at home’: Toronto police
Toronto police are reminding the public that drones are prohibited over Toronto Stadium and the FIFA Fan Festival.
“Flying a drone in this area comes with serious penalties. Leave the drone at home,” they said in a social media post.
Police said that as of June 10, at least 15 people have been charged for unauthorized drone use.
- Phil Tsekouras, CTV News Toronto Journalist
11:30 a.m. - 511 Bathurst bypassing some stops post-match
The TTC says transit riders taking the 511 Bathurst post-match should know some stops won’t be serviced.
“After each match, northbound 511 Bathurst streetcars will bypass all stops on Bathurst Street between Fleet Street and King Street West,” the TTC said in a tweet Tuesday.
Customers with accessibility needs will be accommodated as requested.
- Phil Tsekouras, CTV News Toronto Journalist
11 a.m. – Rush-hour fan marches could cause headaches for drivers
Thousands of fans of both squads are expected to hit the streets in the hours leading up to kickoff.
The Panama fan march will start at 3 p.m., beginning at Trinity Bellwoods Park. The group will then walk southbound on Strachan Avenue to Coronation Park.
The Croatians will start at the Toronto Event Centre, temporarily rebranded as “Croatia House,” at 5:30 p.m., before walking along Saskatchewan Road to Princes’ Blvd to Manitoba Drive to Nova Scotia Avenue.
Road closures will be in effect.
Last week, an estimated 5,000 Panama supporters marched to Toronto Stadium ahead of the team’s match with Ghana.
An estimated 130,000 people of Croatian descent live in Canada, with many of them residing in the GTA.
- Phil Tsekouras, CTV News Toronto Journalist
