How Canadians are using AI to navigate World Cup soccer ticket/transit chaos

Monday, June 8, 2026 at 8:42PM
Sonya Davidson in Entertainment, FIFA, FIFA World Cup, FIFA World Cup 2026, Google, Google Search, Sports, Toronto, Vancouver

With the FIFA World Cup 2026™ kicking off this week in Canada, fans across the country are buzzing! Here in Toronto we're counting down the days! The city has made several announcements on road closures on game days as well as attractions announcing where to go to take in all the fun. 

Google’s latest Search data from Canada reveals that while fans are excited to watch local heroes like Alphonso Davies and icons like Messi and Ronaldo, their Searches are also dominated by logistics. 

Canadians are seeking answers on how to watch the games, ticket access, and how to navigate Vancouver's BC Place as well as Toronto's BMO Field.

Google is helping to make things easier for soccer fans. Whether you’re searching for the latest scores, navigating the routes to a match or looking for a recap of the day's biggest plays, Search, Maps, Waze and Gemini can help bring fans closer to the action.

Avoid Gridlock with Waze & Maps: Google Maps and Waze have updated road closure and transit info for host cities. Plus, for the first time, Waze is introducing live score updates on your dashboard when your car is safely stopped.

Agentic Ticket Booking & AI Search: Fans can use AI Mode in Search for "agentic" ticket booking to bypass the scalper headache, or ask it to generate custom interactive visuals to explain complex soccer formations.

Find Your Fan Zone: No tickets? Fans can type into Ask Maps: "Find me a reservation for 4 at 7:30 p.m., somewhere I can watch the World Cup match and meet other fans," and Maps will handle the rest.

Personalized Morning Briefings: Gemini subscribers can now schedule a daily automated morning briefing summarizing their favorite teams' matches, scores, and news.

So, what are Canadians searching for? Here's a fun look of Word Cup Searches from the past week in Canada (as of June 1, 2026)

Top Searched National Teams

1. Canada

2. Portugal 

3. England

4. Morocco

5. Mexico 

Top Searched Athletes

1. Christiano Ronaldo 

2. Lionel Messi 

3. Ousmane Dembélé

4. Alphonso Davies

5. Julián Alvarez

Top Searched Host Cities

1. Toronto

2. Vancouver

3. Los Angeles

4. Boston

5. Seattle

Top Searched Stadiums

1. BC Place

2. BMO Field

3. MetLife Stadium

4. SoFi Stadium

5. Lumen Field

Trending questions around the World Cup, past week:

• When is the first World Cup game? (Source)

• Who is most likely to win the FIFA World Cup? (Source) 

• How to watch the World Cup in Canada? (Source)

• What does dai dai mean? (Source) 

• Which World Cup Games are in Toronto? (Source)

Article originally appeared on Reviews, News and Opinion with a Canadian Perspective (https://www.canadianreviewer.com/).