Winnipeg teens will carry out official match balls at World Cup By: Joshua Frey-Sam Posted: 7:54 PM CDT Wednesday, Jun. 10, 2026

For Aiden Karacsony and Cristiano Morais, the pre-match is the main event.

In the coming weeks, the Winnipeg teens and aspiring footy professionals will feel their dreams become reality on soccer’s biggest stage, with the world watching for a few moments.

Karacsony and Morais were selected to FIFA’s “49th Team” who will carry out the official match ball ahead of World Cup matches hosted in Canada this summer.

The 13-year-olds were among 13 young Canadians chosen for the opportunity.

“Exciting. Nerve-wracking. But I think it’ll be good, even though I spend almost every day thinking about the opportunity. Hopefully, I don’t trip during that time,” said Karacscony, who has drawn an assignment in the round-of-32 on July 2 in Vancouver.

“I spend almost every day thinking about the opportunity. Hopefully, I don’t trip during that time.”

Morais will get the first crack at it, carrying out the ball ahead of Ghana and Panama’s group stage match on June 17 in Toronto.

The World Cup kicks off today in Canada, the United States and Mexico. The Canadians will play their first group stage match on Friday against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto.

“I’ve always wanted to go to a World Cup, and it’s always been a dream of mine,” Morais said. “I didn’t even think about carrying the ball out, but now I get to, so it’ll be a great experience.”

Reaching this point certainly wasn’t easy. While six carriers were selected through the Inspiring Stories program — a short video, sharing a child’s personal story and love for soccer — Karacsony and Morais outlasted 750 applicants through a series of futsal tryouts held across the country.

Futsal is played on a smaller, indoor surface than soccer and features five players per side. It’s a faster-paced game that demands precision and quick decision-making.

First was a trip to Edmonton in October for a two-day affair that saw 150 players, including five from Winnipeg, attempt to impress in scrimmages. They advanced to the top 25 camp held in Toronto in January, which was more detailed with drills that tested their technical and tactical skills.

“For me, I just play. I know there was a lot at stake and all that, but I just felt like I needed to play to the best of my abilities and not worry,” said Morais. “I was pretty nervous, but I just felt like when you’re nervous, you’re scared to make mistakes, and you can’t be scared to make mistakes at the highest level.”

“I know there was a lot at stake and all that, but I just felt like I needed to play to the best of my abilities and not worry.”

Not only was there an opportunity to play an integral role in the World Cup, but the seven players chosen would also represent Canada at the Match Ball Carrier Cup, a high-performance tournament in Los Angeles that featured the top 10–13-year-old futsal players from nine countries.

Canada did not make it out of the group stage but defeated the United States and drew against Spain. The Canadians were also grouped with Brazil and South Korea.

“It was really good competition there,” Karacscony said. “It was nice playing against other kids from different countries. It was a unique experience.”

The irony was that Morais and Karacsony had almost exclusively known each other as rivals before they arrived in Edmonton. For the last two years, they have been on opposing sides of perhaps the most heated duel in Winnipeg youth soccer between AK Soccer Academy and 1V1 Futbol Dreams Academy.

“It’s like Real Madrid and Barcelona. It’s like those two teams every time we match up against each other — way more physical and a harder game in general,” said Morais, who plays for AK Soccer Academy.

While the rivalry runs hot on the pitch, both say they put it on hold for a few days to support one another during the tryouts, and that strengthened their relationship in the process.

“It’s actually good to have someone with you, because you’re not alone in this, you have another teammate, friend that’s helping you through,” said Karacsony. “All these interviews, got him and you, and it’s kind of a cool experience, because two from Winnipeg made it.”

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“We’re like brothers now.”

“We’re like brothers now,” added Morais. “Because of interviews, we see each other almost every day. We talk about soccer, we talk about teams, and we just have this unbreakable relationship between us.”

Both are viewed as strong up-and-comers in Winnipeg’s footy pipeline and clearly have a knack for futsal, as well.

Morais has completed internship camps in England (Everton F.C.) and the Netherlands (FC Twente), while Karacsony has continued to play as high as the 15-and-under level locally.

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Joshua Frey-Sam
Reporter

Josh Frey-Sam reports on sports and business at the Free Press. Josh got his start at the paper in 2022, just weeks after graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College. He reports primarily on amateur teams and athletes in sports. Read more about Josh.

Every piece of reporting Josh produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.