A COFFEE
CHAT WITH
JESSE
MARSCH
April 15, 2025
The Canadian men’s national team is in a bit of a transition phase. During the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying cycle, the squad was full of young talent—players who were just starting to make a name for themselves on the international stage. Fast forward to today, and many of those same players have secured moves to Europe, earning valuable experience at some of the world’s biggest clubs. But with growth comes new challenges. As expectations rise and pressure increases – as the World Cup is set to come to Canada for the first time in 2026 – so does the need for strong leadership.
That’s where the role of the national team gaffer becomes more important than ever. While Canada’s talent pool has expanded, the nucleus of the squad remains incredibly young. Development is still a priority, but now, there’s also pressure to take the next step and to consistently compete at the highest level. Enter Jesse Marsch.
When Marsch was appointed as head coach, the move signaled a new chapter for the program. With his experience coaching in Europe and his reputation for developing young players, the hope is that he can elevate this generation from promising up-and-comers to genuine contenders on the world stage. But what does that journey look like? What are the expectations for this team moving forward?
Fresh off a Cross-Canada coaching tour in January, DARBY Magazine caught up with Marsch to chat about the state of the national team, the challenges ahead, and what fans should expect from this new era of Canadian football.
That’s where the role of the national team gaffer becomes more important than ever. While Canada’s talent pool has expanded, the nucleus of the squad remains incredibly young. Development is still a priority, but now, there’s also pressure to take the next step and to consistently compete at the highest level. Enter Jesse Marsch.
When Marsch was appointed as head coach, the move signaled a new chapter for the program. With his experience coaching in Europe and his reputation for developing young players, the hope is that he can elevate this generation from promising up-and-comers to genuine contenders on the world stage. But what does that journey look like? What are the expectations for this team moving forward?
Fresh off a Cross-Canada coaching tour in January, DARBY Magazine caught up with Marsch to chat about the state of the national team, the challenges ahead, and what fans should expect from this new era of Canadian football.
DARBY: You’re from Wisconsin, a place that isn't known for being the most soccer crazy. Where did your passion and love for the game come from?
JM: Well, you know that we had a group of friends that we liked to laugh with when we were young, and the basis of our friendship was sports in general. We played a lot of different sports in the backyard or on the driveway. Basketball, and pond hockey, but soccer was the one that was always the most fun for me, and I was kind of the best at it. And my parents, when I even started, were like, ‘what soccer? We don’t know what that is’. So it doesn’t come from my parents.
My family is German and Polish, but they’re, you know, in America. They’ve separated from their heritage, and we were like an American family growing up in a suburban setting. But, one thing I hated was losing. I had to learn how to use my competitiveness not to cross the line and not do things that would get me in trouble in the game, or behave in ways that I wouldn’t be proud of. I think over time, I’ve kind of understood that about myself and how to manage that better. And then even as a coach, like of course, I’m incredibly competitive, but I also know that to really create the kind of team environment that I believe you need to be successful, I’ve had to look at development more. I’ve had to develop more patience. I’ve had to find ways to be more selfless and reach people in different ways. So that whole development as a player helped me as a coach.
JM: Well, you know that we had a group of friends that we liked to laugh with when we were young, and the basis of our friendship was sports in general. We played a lot of different sports in the backyard or on the driveway. Basketball, and pond hockey, but soccer was the one that was always the most fun for me, and I was kind of the best at it. And my parents, when I even started, were like, ‘what soccer? We don’t know what that is’. So it doesn’t come from my parents.
My family is German and Polish, but they’re, you know, in America. They’ve separated from their heritage, and we were like an American family growing up in a suburban setting. But, one thing I hated was losing. I had to learn how to use my competitiveness not to cross the line and not do things that would get me in trouble in the game, or behave in ways that I wouldn’t be proud of. I think over time, I’ve kind of understood that about myself and how to manage that better. And then even as a coach, like of course, I’m incredibly competitive, but I also know that to really create the kind of team environment that I believe you need to be successful, I’ve had to look at development more. I’ve had to develop more patience. I’ve had to find ways to be more selfless and reach people in different ways. So that whole development as a player helped me as a coach.
Toronto and Montreal are exports of a lot of Canada’s talent. Why do you think it’s important to keep tapping into smaller markets that are proven to have stars like Jacob Shaffelburg?
JM: Well, the first stop of my [Canadian coaching clinic] tour was in Halifax, and I knew the Maritime Messi legend about Jacob Shaffelburg. And at the first symposium we had, his parents were in the audience. So Shaff texted me as soon as I landed, I got a text from him saying, ‘Welcome to the best province in Canada’. I flew over the country from town to town, and in January, there’s snow everywhere. I’ve seen the pride for the game in a lot of different areas, and it comes in different forms, whether it’s youth or college soccer or players or coaches or fans, parents of players. They all love the game so much, and they love the national team, and they love what they’re seeing now with the national team, and they’re all excited for 2026 obviously, but they’re asking questions like, ‘How can we help? How can we develop our game more?’. The most important question, probably the most for a young coach, is what’s the most important thing in my development? And the things that I’ve said the most are thinking about not just passing football, but intensive football, and aggressive and pressing and counter-pressing football. And then putting yourself out there, and, doing things like they were doing. Being at some of my coaching symposiums, going out to coaching education, working with lots of different teams. Watching teams, watching coaches, watching players, and trying to think about how they want to add it to who they are. The eagerness, I think, in the country, for so many people to help establish themselves and the game means that there’s a bright future for the possibility of what we can create, especially together like this.
What has surprised you on this tour, meeting with coaches, meeting with Canadian supporters, players. What have you learned throughout this tour?
JM: I think from taking this tour, I’ve learned that people want to be more connected to the national team. They would love to have the national team in their communities more. I’ve been calling it the people’s team and I think we do have to find ways to make sure that we’re not just Toronto-based, that we’re having touchpoints in lots of different communities. And by the way, the players are committed to that, they also understand the responsibility they have to the sport, to the young players in the game, to the country, and to make sure that, in all ways, in 2026 we have a team that everyone can be proud of. They get it more than I do.
It’s also about helping them understand, if we all want to work together, what direction are we going in, and what things do we need to value, and how can we help our players, and how can we support the national team program?
We’ve been doing a lot of fundraising around the country. We’ve been making a lot of connections with government officials to understand how we can maximize exactly what the national team program is, and how we can even access more dual nationals and welcome more players, good players, under our umbrella of what it is to be Canadian.
And then obviously there’s the coaching and player community, and how we can help that come together—how we can have a bit more of a directive around what we’re trying to achieve from a style of play perspective. Then through the youth national team programs—which we need to keep building, more and more, for both boys and girls—we can really start to share the experience with more people in the community, and shape a broader sense of how the game can grow in this country. That growth leads to more passion, more expertise, better players, and better teams. That’s the goal.
JM: I think from taking this tour, I’ve learned that people want to be more connected to the national team. They would love to have the national team in their communities more. I’ve been calling it the people’s team and I think we do have to find ways to make sure that we’re not just Toronto-based, that we’re having touchpoints in lots of different communities. And by the way, the players are committed to that, they also understand the responsibility they have to the sport, to the young players in the game, to the country, and to make sure that, in all ways, in 2026 we have a team that everyone can be proud of. They get it more than I do.
It’s also about helping them understand, if we all want to work together, what direction are we going in, and what things do we need to value, and how can we help our players, and how can we support the national team program?
We’ve been doing a lot of fundraising around the country. We’ve been making a lot of connections with government officials to understand how we can maximize exactly what the national team program is, and how we can even access more dual nationals and welcome more players, good players, under our umbrella of what it is to be Canadian.
And then obviously there’s the coaching and player community, and how we can help that come together—how we can have a bit more of a directive around what we’re trying to achieve from a style of play perspective. Then through the youth national team programs—which we need to keep building, more and more, for both boys and girls—we can really start to share the experience with more people in the community, and shape a broader sense of how the game can grow in this country. That growth leads to more passion, more expertise, better players, and better teams. That’s the goal.
You look at France, Netherlands, England, they have a development centre. Do you think it’s important that Canada tries to do something like that?
JM: One of the things I hear a lot is that we need more facilities—and we do, especially since the game has to be played indoors for much of the winter because of the weather. So of course, the idea of a national training centre is great. The idea of multiple national training centres, I think, is even better.
But in the meantime, I’ve tried to challenge people not to think too inside the box—not to be too conventional about what it means to develop players. When I look back to when I was young in Wisconsin, we didn’t have perfect facilities. But any gym that was open on weeknights, we were there with our teams, playing. Sometimes the rules were a little different, but we were on the ball. And sometimes in the winter, the ball would bounce off the wall—there was more action, more training, more touches. You had to really work on your technique because the surface was faster.
There are a lot of benefits to playing in different environments—learning how the game feels on different surfaces, in different situations. And I really believe all of that still helps breed talent. I say this all the time: look at pond hockey in Canada. People always tell me the best hockey players came out of unstructured environments—just shoveling off the snow and playing.
Sometimes we think more coaching is the answer, but I think what’s even more important is passion. Kids need to love the game, want to be around it, be a part of it at all times. So yes, national centres are important—we need to keep building infrastructure and funding high-level opportunities for our players. But in the end, making sure the passion for the game comes first is the most important step.
JM: One of the things I hear a lot is that we need more facilities—and we do, especially since the game has to be played indoors for much of the winter because of the weather. So of course, the idea of a national training centre is great. The idea of multiple national training centres, I think, is even better.
But in the meantime, I’ve tried to challenge people not to think too inside the box—not to be too conventional about what it means to develop players. When I look back to when I was young in Wisconsin, we didn’t have perfect facilities. But any gym that was open on weeknights, we were there with our teams, playing. Sometimes the rules were a little different, but we were on the ball. And sometimes in the winter, the ball would bounce off the wall—there was more action, more training, more touches. You had to really work on your technique because the surface was faster.
There are a lot of benefits to playing in different environments—learning how the game feels on different surfaces, in different situations. And I really believe all of that still helps breed talent. I say this all the time: look at pond hockey in Canada. People always tell me the best hockey players came out of unstructured environments—just shoveling off the snow and playing.
Sometimes we think more coaching is the answer, but I think what’s even more important is passion. Kids need to love the game, want to be around it, be a part of it at all times. So yes, national centres are important—we need to keep building infrastructure and funding high-level opportunities for our players. But in the end, making sure the passion for the game comes first is the most important step.
You’ve spoken about the importance of growing young talent in the CPL. Why is that important and what do you look for in these young prospects?
JM: When I took over the first team—even in my initial conversations with the players, many of whom were based in Europe because we were holding a European camp—I tried to make something clear: too many of them were playing the game because it was fun and they were good at it. But there wasn’t enough focus on the pursuit of excellence, or on maximizing their potential—not just as footballers, but as people.
I told them that, in my view, a lot of them were still at a developmental stage you’d expect from a 19, 20, or 21-year-old—not a 24, 25, or 26-year-old. And that we now needed to accelerate the expectations and demands required to succeed on the world stage—to understand what the highest levels of the game really look like.
Look, there’s a kindness and generosity and a real, genuine quality to what Canadian culture is, but I think we have to also find a way to challenge our young athletes more. To demand more out of them. To not just accept them as being who they are and how good they are at the moment, but challenge them on how to be better. We have to find a way to create higher standards for what the highest levels of the game look like and help them mature faster.
I don’t want to professionalize the sport in our country, but I do want to challenge our players to be more mature, to understand what the higher levels of the game look like, and to commit to this idea of excellence. How good can I be? How much can I test myself at every level and make sure that I’m ready for big challenges and that I have the fearlessness to know that I can be successful at the highest levels?
So it’s a mentality as much as talent for these kids?
Of course. We want to maximize the potential of the talent that we’re creating. But look at the men’s and women’s teams. There’s already a lot of talent there. I just think that there’s a higher standard that we can set for them... because we believe in them they deserve to be pushed more.
JM: When I took over the first team—even in my initial conversations with the players, many of whom were based in Europe because we were holding a European camp—I tried to make something clear: too many of them were playing the game because it was fun and they were good at it. But there wasn’t enough focus on the pursuit of excellence, or on maximizing their potential—not just as footballers, but as people.
I told them that, in my view, a lot of them were still at a developmental stage you’d expect from a 19, 20, or 21-year-old—not a 24, 25, or 26-year-old. And that we now needed to accelerate the expectations and demands required to succeed on the world stage—to understand what the highest levels of the game really look like.
Look, there’s a kindness and generosity and a real, genuine quality to what Canadian culture is, but I think we have to also find a way to challenge our young athletes more. To demand more out of them. To not just accept them as being who they are and how good they are at the moment, but challenge them on how to be better. We have to find a way to create higher standards for what the highest levels of the game look like and help them mature faster.
I don’t want to professionalize the sport in our country, but I do want to challenge our players to be more mature, to understand what the higher levels of the game look like, and to commit to this idea of excellence. How good can I be? How much can I test myself at every level and make sure that I’m ready for big challenges and that I have the fearlessness to know that I can be successful at the highest levels?
So it’s a mentality as much as talent for these kids?
Of course. We want to maximize the potential of the talent that we’re creating. But look at the men’s and women’s teams. There’s already a lot of talent there. I just think that there’s a higher standard that we can set for them... because we believe in them they deserve to be pushed more.
How do we get everyone on the same page across Canada working together?
JM: So what happens on this tour I’ve been on is, I sort of drop into each town. I’m there for 24 hours—maybe 36 if I’m lucky. Someone from the provincial organization or the local community picks me up, and they say, “We’re excited to have you here. It’ll be great to have this kind of coaching talk. However, this community is very fragmented in how people think about the game and how they work together.”
But then we show up at the coaching symposium. I get started, and I can see a little bit of skepticism—like, “Okay, what’s this guy about?” Which is fair. I get it. But in the end, I think once they see my approach—that I’m not there to tell them what to do, but to be an example of what we can create together—I think there’s a real shift. A total shift in the sense of unity.
And that shift has to start with me. It has to.
In the end, the best thing we can do for these communities is build a more robust youth national team program. Then we can really train the coaches. Then we can train the players. And through that, we can start to share the information and the style of play more clearly—starting from the youth level—and it’ll begin to permeate the community more and more.
Our national first team has to perform well. People need to see the ideas we’re talking about in action—to see how this vision of football actually benefits players. And once that happens, I think the belief in what we’re building will grow.
JM: So what happens on this tour I’ve been on is, I sort of drop into each town. I’m there for 24 hours—maybe 36 if I’m lucky. Someone from the provincial organization or the local community picks me up, and they say, “We’re excited to have you here. It’ll be great to have this kind of coaching talk. However, this community is very fragmented in how people think about the game and how they work together.”
But then we show up at the coaching symposium. I get started, and I can see a little bit of skepticism—like, “Okay, what’s this guy about?” Which is fair. I get it. But in the end, I think once they see my approach—that I’m not there to tell them what to do, but to be an example of what we can create together—I think there’s a real shift. A total shift in the sense of unity.
And that shift has to start with me. It has to.
In the end, the best thing we can do for these communities is build a more robust youth national team program. Then we can really train the coaches. Then we can train the players. And through that, we can start to share the information and the style of play more clearly—starting from the youth level—and it’ll begin to permeate the community more and more.
Our national first team has to perform well. People need to see the ideas we’re talking about in action—to see how this vision of football actually benefits players. And once that happens, I think the belief in what we’re building will grow.
This year, the men's national team can win two trophies, but you’ve said you're not overly focused on that. What are you focused on in 2025 with this group?
JM: I don’t have to tell the players that it would be great to win a trophy, right? They’re coming in with that goal already in mind. What matters is making sure we don’t skip steps. Because as important as a trophy would be in March or June, if it doesn’t lead to real improvement and development for the summer of 2026, then it’s for nothing.
Of course, the competitive fire in all of us means that when March comes around, we won’t be satisfied unless we’re the ones lifting the trophy. But even then, the focus has to remain on the bigger picture—helping this team stay committed to its development path, continuing to push to higher and higher levels, and growing individually and collectively within the football identity we’re trying to build.
Lastly, we‘re only 400-plus days away. What do you think this team needs to do to be as competitive as possible? And what does a successful 2026 World Cup look like to you?
JM: A couple of things. First, we feel really good about the core of our team right now. We know we have a talented, dynamic group playing club football at a high level, and they’re starting to understand who we want to be—our identity and DNA as a national team.
But one thing we learned from Copa América is that we need a deeper, wider player pool. In a tournament setting, rotation is key—you need freshness and quality across the entire squad.
And then, there’s the 2026 World Cup format. If we win our group, we have the chance to play two more matches in Canada. If we finish second, we head to the U.S. and don’t return. So unlike the last World Cup—where the goal was just to get our first win, our first goal—this time the objective is clear: we have to win the group.
If we do that, we could play up to five matches on home soil. And that opens the door to something really special. So the motivation and focus every time we come together isn’t on small benchmarks of success—it’s on the bigger vision of how great we can be. And then making sure we’re dialed in on every detail it takes to be fully prepared for that moment.
JM: I don’t have to tell the players that it would be great to win a trophy, right? They’re coming in with that goal already in mind. What matters is making sure we don’t skip steps. Because as important as a trophy would be in March or June, if it doesn’t lead to real improvement and development for the summer of 2026, then it’s for nothing.
Of course, the competitive fire in all of us means that when March comes around, we won’t be satisfied unless we’re the ones lifting the trophy. But even then, the focus has to remain on the bigger picture—helping this team stay committed to its development path, continuing to push to higher and higher levels, and growing individually and collectively within the football identity we’re trying to build.
Lastly, we‘re only 400-plus days away. What do you think this team needs to do to be as competitive as possible? And what does a successful 2026 World Cup look like to you?
JM: A couple of things. First, we feel really good about the core of our team right now. We know we have a talented, dynamic group playing club football at a high level, and they’re starting to understand who we want to be—our identity and DNA as a national team.
But one thing we learned from Copa América is that we need a deeper, wider player pool. In a tournament setting, rotation is key—you need freshness and quality across the entire squad.
And then, there’s the 2026 World Cup format. If we win our group, we have the chance to play two more matches in Canada. If we finish second, we head to the U.S. and don’t return. So unlike the last World Cup—where the goal was just to get our first win, our first goal—this time the objective is clear: we have to win the group.
If we do that, we could play up to five matches on home soil. And that opens the door to something really special. So the motivation and focus every time we come together isn’t on small benchmarks of success—it’s on the bigger vision of how great we can be. And then making sure we’re dialed in on every detail it takes to be fully prepared for that moment.