World Cup watch party happening in Mississauga and Brampton

FIFA World Cup fans in Mississauga who’ve been enjoying the ongoing watch party at Celebration Square in the downtown core are getting a bonus game to take in late Friday night.

The City of Mississauga, which is hosting the five-week watch party at the popular outdoor venue, said on Friday morning that due to schedule changes, “we will be screening an additional FIFA World Cup match (Egypt versus Iran) at Celebration Square tonight, June 26, at 11 p.m.”

Both Egypt and Iran have a chance to move past the tournament’s group stage depending on the result later tonight. Round of 32 action begins on Sunday.

While not every match during World Cup action is being shown on the big outdoor screens at the square, some five dozen of the contests have been or will be televised at the Mississauga venue between June 11 and July 19.

The late-night Friday match between Egypt and Iran is also being added to the watch schedule at Brampton’s Garden Square, the City of Brampton confirmed.

No games are scheduled to be shown at Celebration Square on Saturday, but the Canada versus South Africa Round of 32 match on Sunday will be on the screens. Game time is 3 p.m.

Games to be shown this coming Monday at Celebration Square:

• Brazil vs. Japan — 1 p.m.
• Teams to be determined — 4:30 p.m.
• Netherlands vs. Morocco — 9 p.m.

To see what other matches are scheduled to be shown at Mississauga Celebration Square, check out the city’s broadcast schedule.

The 38-day FIFA event, held every four years, began June 11 with a largest-ever field of 48 teams and is being co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico. Games in Canada will be played in Toronto and Vancouver.

“Join your friends and neighbours to cheer on Canada, and all of your favourite teams, at the city’s biggest soccer watch parties,” city officials said in an earlier online description of the five-week Mississauga viewing event, dubbed Watch the World Play.

In total, city officials plan to screen 62 matches at the venue over the course of the 38-day premier international soccer tournament. Games will be screened around previously scheduled festival programming at the square, the city noted, and will be free and accessible to the public.

Matches and schedules are subject to change, officials added.

Round of 32 action gets underway Sunday, Round of 16 play starts July 4, quarter-final matches take place July 9-11, the semi-finals go July 14-15 and the World Cup final is slated for July 19.

Throughout World Cup action, Mississauga restaurants and bars can serve alcohol to customers for an extra hour every day, the city decided earlier this year.

Mississauga city council agreed in March to request that the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario permit licensed local bars and restaurants in Mississauga to extend the hours of alcohol service to 3 a.m. during the World Cup “to coincide with late-night match broadcasts and to support local businesses while allowing fans to watch matches together.”

Mississauga Ward 4 Coun. and Deputy Mayor John Kovac said earlier the World Cup brings “excitement, unity and celebration” to communities around the world. In Mississauga, the deputy mayor added, the city recognizes “the enthusiasm of our residents and the many local fans who gather to cheer on their favourite teams — an opportunity for everyone to come together and celebrate this international event.”

With many of the matches to be held on the west coast in both Canada and the U.S., fans in Mississauga and elsewhere in the east will be watching late-night action into the wee hours in some cases.