Canada fans support men's World Cup after 36 years

STORY: Canadian fans did their best to enjoy the first trip to the World Cup for their men's team since 1986 despite a difficult loss to highly ranked Belgium Wednesday (November 23) afternoon.

Women's star Christine Sinclair was among those cheering on the men at an indoor watch party in near freezing Toronto.

"Just as a Canadian and as a soccer fan I've been waiting for this for a long time," the Olympic soccer gold medalist said.

Canada's star Alphonso Davies came up short on a penalty kick and Belgium got a first half goal from Michy Batshuayi to hang on for a 1-0 win in their Group F match.

Canada, who unexpectedly became the first CONCACAF country to qualify for this year's World Cup finals, last took part in the tournament in 1986, where they crashed out at the group stage both winless and goalless.

Belgium, third-place finishers at the 2018 finals, managed only nine attempts on goal while Canada had 21. Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois saved a penalty early in the first half and Michy Batshuayi scored on the stroke of halftime to give Belgium the win.

Canada failed to capitalize on several scoring opportunities but still stood up to their mighty opponents by preventing them from settling into the match.