In a country where ice hockey is traditionally considered the national sport, football has offered immigrants a way to connect with one another and with their home countries, said Manuel DaCosta, a Portuguese-Canadian business owner who immigrated to Canada 56 years ago.
“If you take away soccer and politics, the Portuguese don’t have much to talk about,” he joked.
It is also much cheaper to play than ice hockey, a sport with notoriously expensive equipment, making it a popular choice for recent immigrants with modest financial means.
In 2011, José helped start Toronto’s Sporting FC academy – the first certified academy of the storied Portuguese football club of the same name outside of Portugal, offering both competitive and recreational programmes for youth.
The academy, he said, was inspired by his own football ambitions growing up.
“Canada has allowed us an opportunity to dream, and we dream through our children,” José said.
He said Stephen’s goal will undoubtedly inspire future generations of Portuguese Canadians to take up the sport.
“They’re going to wake up this morning wanting to be the next Stephen Eustáquio and have a dream like he did,” he said.
But success on the pitch hasn’t sheltered the Eustáquio family from tragedy.
Esmeralda died from brain cancer in April 2023 and Armando died a year later from a heart attack.
The dual losses have weighed heavily on Stephen and the rest of the family.
“You could see when Stephen was walking around the field post game, and he was very emotional… we knew that he was having thoughts of his parents and his brother,” José said.
Sunday’s match was nearing the end without a goal scored from either Canada or South Africa, prompting Canada’s head coach Jesse Marsch to send in Davies for the last 15 minutes – his first time playing in the tournament after recovering from a hamstring injury.
Davies brought undeniable momentum to the pitch, but in the end, it was Eustáquio who made history.
“In a group of incredible human beings, maybe Steph is the most deserving to have a moment like that,” Marsch, Canada’s head coach, said after the match.
“Really happy for him, and I think from somewhere his parents are looking down, and they saw that.”
