Bryan Adams, The Beaches help kick off countdown to FIFA World Cup
· Toronto Sun
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The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicked off Wednesday night with three simultaneous and televised countdown concerts in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico collectively called the FIFA Countdown Concert.
Andrea Bocelli, in a dashing blue blazer and sun glasses, set the bar high in Mexico City with his dramatic opening song Nelle tue mani (Now We Are Free) from the movie Gladiator , while accompanied by an orchestra and a choir as images of soccer players in action played on large screens behind him.
Giving it his best shot in Toronto was veteran Canadian rocker Bryan Adams, wearing a black Adidas track suit, in front of thousands of fans as he sang Roll with the Punches from his 2025 album of the same name and the classic crowd-pleaser Summer of ‘69 (spurring a fan singalong) at Fort York and the Bentway, the site of the FIFA Fan Festival .
“Let the games begin!’ yelled Adams at the end of his two-song set.
‘Unreal’ atmosphere in Toronto
“Oh, look at that iconic Toronto skyline!” added Toronto host Marissa Roberto before images of the CN Tower, the aquarium and Kensington Market were shown in a video montage of the city.
“We’re here in Toronto where the atmosphere is unreal right now,” said Roberto and it was a cool-looking scene with cars moving along the Gardiner Expressway and the CN Tower in the background.
“Can you feel it? This is a historic night for Canada as we’re hosting our first ever men’s FIFA World Cup matches.”
Also performing in Toronto was Nora Fatehi, joined by Sanjoy and Vegedream, performing Oh Mama! Tetema , Ramenez la coupe a la maison and Siir Siir .
But it was The Beaches, who Roberto introduced as “the next wave of rock royalty” with famous fans including the Rolling Stones, the Foo Fighters and Elton John, who got the most hype as they performed Edge of the Earth and Last Girls at the Party .
Winning in the good feeling category was AHI and Wyclef Jean’s uplifting performance of Chosen , which featured a group of children with flags dancing on stage alongside them and Jean namedropping Drake with his rap: “Put your hands up if you rep the six and you’re ready! It’s Wyclef Jean! I’m in the Ice Man’s city!”
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Meanwhile in Los Angeles, Afro-beat singer-songwriter Davido kicked things off from that end with a medley of Fall , Unavailable and With You followed by Ava Max, resplendent in a bright blue outfit, who sang Kings and Queens, Pt. 2 and Energy , while surrounded by dancers and blasts of steam.
Later performing in Mexico City was Los Ángeles Azules with Belinda for their songs Por Ella and Amor a Primera Vista , while Elena Rose struck quite the look in a white gown and long white hair for solo versions of Me lo merezco and La Semana .
The EDM group Major Lazer, eventually joined by BIA, wrapped the entire evening up in L.A. with Lean On , Watch Out For This , Whole Lotta Money , No Place Like Home and Light It Up .
The first-of-its-kind live music event heralded the first 2026 FIFA World Cup match on Thursday at 3 p.m. between Mexico and South Africa, who will go head to head in Mexico City.
Canada begins its quest for the cup on Friday against Bosnia and Herzegovina at 3 p.m. at BMO Field.
We’ve heard the beautiful music. Now let’s see the beautiful game.