Canadian soccer coach Marsch tells Trump to 'lay off ridiculous rhetoric' of Canada as 51st state

Neil Davidson · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Feb 26, 2025 4:14 PM EST | Last Updated: February 26

Canada shot manager Jesse Marsch waded into authorities Wednesday, telling United States President Donald Trump to "lay disconnected the ridiculous rhetoric astir Canada being a 51st state."

The 51-year-old Marsch, a erstwhile U.S. planetary who was calved successful Racine, Wisc., made his comments astatine a CONCACAF quality league astatine SoFi Stadium successful Inglewood, Calif., the tract of adjacent month's CONCACAF Nations League Finals featuring Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Panama.

He was asked astir the caller Four Nations Face-Off hockey last betwixt Canada and the U.S. and, arsenic an American coaching the Canadian men's team, however comfy was helium with "all this governmental worldly happening close now."

"As an American, I'm ashamed of the arrogance and disregard that we've shown 1 of our historically oldest, strongest and astir loyal allies," Marsch said. "But 1 thing's for sure, erstwhile I look guardant to a period from now, I cognize that this volition substance our squad — the mentality we have, the volition we person to play for our country, the tendency we person to spell aft this tourney successful each mode and to amusement connected and disconnected the transportation precisely what Canadian quality is."

"I warrant you our squad volition beryllium ready," helium added.

WATCH | Marsch denounces '51st state' rhetoric:

Canada, ranked 31st successful the world, takes connected No. 19 Mexico successful 1 semifinal March 20 portion the 16th-ranked U.S. faces No. 36 Panama successful the other. The title and third-place games volition instrumentality spot 3 days later.

"These planetary tournaments for Canada mean thing antithetic now," Marsch said. "And arsenic an American, I'd similar to code the 51st authorities discourse, which I find unsettling and frankly insulting."

"Canada's a beardown autarkic federation that's deep-rooted successful decency. Really. And it's a spot that values precocious morals and respect, dissimilar the polarized, disrespectful and often present hate-fuelled clime that's successful the U.S."

Proud to manager Canada

Marsch said that successful his clip arsenic caput manager helium has recovered that Canada values "fairness and unity" and is simply a state wherever radical find spot successful their differences.

Marsch said helium "couldn't beryllium prouder" to beryllium Canada's coach.

"I've recovered a spot that embodies for maine the ideals and morals of what not conscionable shot and a squad is, but what beingness is," helium said. "And that's integrity, respect and the content that bully radical tin bash large things together."

Asked for his response, Oguchi Onyewu, U.S. Soccer's vice-president of sporting, said helium was determination to beforehand the Nations League.

"My main absorption close present and the U.S.'s absorption is the contention up and hopefully coming backmost arsenic a four-peat champion, knowing that the contention is highly stiff and that immoderate of these 4 teams person the prime successful their subordinate excavation to triumph this tournament," said the erstwhile U.S. international.