Abbotsford’s Sophie Schmidt will wear the red and white for one last time at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, which begins later this month in Australia and New Zealand.
Canada Soccer revealed its roster for the event on Sunday, with Schmidt being named as one of five midfielders on the team.
She made her debut at the World Cup in 2007 and scored a goal against Ghana on Sept. 15. She also suited up at the 2011, 2015 and 2019 editions of the event. The best that Canada has finished at those events was reaching the quarter-finals in 2015.
The W.J. Mouat grad shared in a video posted by Canada Soccer that this final World Cup is an important one for her and the country.
“What this World Cup means to me is achieving greatness,” she said. “The fact that this is my last World Cup hasn’t quite sunk in for me yet. When I was growing up I had no idea women’s soccer even existed – it wasn’t on TV. My focus is to give everything all of me to this team every single day but also to enjoy the process.”
Schmidt said she wants to create memories with her teammates and stated that Canada has to play a gritty style and make it challenging for the opposition to score.
Meet Your Midfield 👋@CANWNT x @CIBC #WeCAN pic.twitter.com/hFMJjd0sez
— Canada Soccer (@CanadaSoccerEN) July 9, 2023
“I would like nothing more than to finish out my career with a successful World Cup,” she said.
The 35-year-old Schmidt has had a storied career with Canada Soccer and won an Olympic gold medal in 2020 and bronze medals in 2016 and 2012. She’s played professionally in Europe and North America and has played with the National Women’s Soccer League’s Houston Dash since 2019. Schmidt is the current captain of the Dash.
Schmidt and Canada open the World Cup on July 20 vs. Nigeria in Melbourne and then take on the Republic of Ireland on July 26 in Perth. Canada closes out the group stage against Australia on July 31 in Melbourne. The 2023 World Cup champion will be crowned on Aug. 20 in Sydney.