Guatemala, Canada clash in Quarterfinals

Both nations target a spot in the 2027 Gold Cup.

MIAMI - The 2026/27 Concacaf Nations League continues on Friday with Guatemala hosting Canada in the First Leg of their Quarterfinals series at Estadio Manuel Felipe Carrera in Guatemala City, Guatemala.

Guatemala won Group B with a 2W-1D-1L record to book their spot in the Quarterfinals. They scored nine combined goals while only conceding three over the four matches, with William Fajardo leading the way in the attack with three goals, netting a hat trick in a 6-nil shut out over El Salvador.

Los Chapines also recorded three clean sheets throughout a strong defensive effort in the Group Stage.

The Central Americas have progressed in this competition over the years, starting in League C in 2019/20 and ultimately reaching League A for the 2023/24 edition, this being their first appearance in the Quarterfinals.

Canada will be looking to replicate their strong run from the 2024/25 edition of the tournament when they finished in Third Place.

After defeating Suriname 4-nil on aggregate in the Quarterfinals, they were blanked 2-nil by Mexico in the Semifinals. Canada was able to finish on a strong note with a 2-1 win over the United States in the Third-Place Match.

The Second Leg will be played on Monday, November 16 in Toronto with the winner of the series earning direct qualification to the 2027 Concacaf Gold Cup.

All-Time Series

Canada leads the all-time head-to-head series GP-17 W-11 D-4 L-2 GF-24 GA-11.

Concacaf Nations League Head-to-Head Series: The teams will meet for the first time.

Concacaf Gold Cup Head-to-Head Series: Canada leads the series GP-3 W-1 D-2 L-0 GF-4 GA-1.

Canada 3-0 Guatemala (Ali Gerba x2; Henry Medina own goal), Quarterfinals - 2007, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough (16-Jun-2007).

Guatemala 0-0 Canada, Group D - 2023, Shell Energy Stadium, Houston (1-Jul-2023).

Canada 1-1 (5-6) Guatemala (Jonathan David; Rubio Méndez), Quarterfinals - 2025, U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis (29-Jun-2025).

Pre-Match Stats

• Guatemala enter these Concacaf Nations League quarter-finals having made the fewest high turnovers in the competition across all leagues, with just six such actions.
• Guatemala had a 53% success rate for their attempted take-ons in the 2026-27 Concacaf Nations League, the second-highest among all teams, only behind French Guiana's 57%.
• Guatemala's Darwin Lom was involved in 17 of his team's sequences that ended in a shot, the highest total for a player from his side in the 2026-27 Concacaf Nations League. Three of these sequences ended in a goal.
• Canada will be looking to qualify beyond the Concacaf Nations League quarter-finals for the third time, having done so in 2022-23, when they were runners-up, and in the last edition (2024-25), when they finished in third place.
• Canada have had more possession than their opponents in seven of their last eight Concacaf Nations League matches, including past editions, with the exception being 40% in their last game against the United States (a 2-1 win).