The final qualification event for the 2026 Men’s World Floorball Championships will be held from the 19th to the 21st of March 2026 in Georgetown, Texas. This event will decide whether Canada or the USA will be playing in the final round in Tampere, Finland this December.
These teams know each other well, having faced off in several previous qualification events. Now, the USA and Canada will meet over three matches to determine who will qualify for the WFC 2026. The group ballot took place at the beginning of March and determined that the qualifying team will be placed in Group D alongside Japan, the Philippines, and Denmark.
The USA last played in the World Championships in 2020 in Helsinki, Finland. They also participated in The World Games in 2022 when the event was held in Birmingham, Alabama. Canada, on the other hand, are a regular fixture at the World Championships. They last appeared in 2024 and 2022, and also competed in The World Games 2025 in Chengdu, China.
Both teams have new leadership, with Matti Kaipio, Tuomas Korhonen and Nick VanPatten forming the new coaching staff for the USA and Iiro Romo and Oliver Teir leading Canada. Team USA are bringing a young squad to this home qualifier, and their roster is focused on homegrown players. One to watch is Ollie Parent, who was a leading scorer for Team USA during the last U19 cycle and made his debut for the men’s team at just 16 years old. He is part of the squad for these qualifiers. David Hansen represents the more experienced side, and is commonly among the team’s leading scorers at international events. With nearly a decade of experience representing Team USA, he can always be relied upon to get the team going offensively. The team captain, Mikko Vähä-Vahe, has been a member of Team USA for 15 years, and holds the record for the most caps for the United States national team. According to the team, his leadership has inspired an entire generation of American floorballers.
Canada, meanwhile, are coming off a difficult World Championships 2024 where they finished 16th. The team is still putting its faith in a mix of veterans and new faces, and the aim is clear: to qualify for WFC 2026. Canada also has two rookies worth mentioning: Alexander Field, previously the U19 captain, is a solid offensive player with speed and great hands. In defence, there’s Reed Hunsberger, who has great ball sense and is physical in the corners. Their defence is further strengthened by Eetu Lumiala, who has great floorball sense, is confident and calm under pressure, and has a blistering shot. One of Canada’s most skilful players is Cedric Grenapin – a dynamic player who can control the game in many ways, with speed, ball control, a wicked slapshot, and great floorball intuition.
Which team will take home the last spot in WFC 2026?
Schedule
Thursday 19th March at 19:00 (01:00 CET)
Friday 20th March at 19:00 (01:00 CET)
Saturday 21st March at 11:00 (17:00 CET)
All matches live on the IFF App!
Prices for WFCQ 2026
Game ticket: 7.99€ per match
Event pass AMER: 12.99€ (all matches from AMER WFCQ)
Men’s WFCQ SuperPass: 24.99€ (ALL matches from ALL Men’s WFCQ 2026 events – AOFC, EUR1-3, AMER)
