Aussies, Kiwis converge on B.C. for World Cup, bringing super fandom from Down Under

VANCOUVER – Wherever they are in the world, sports fans Lachlan Carter and younger brother Bailey know how to find fellow Australians.

“We hear the accent, they hear the accent, and then, you know, it goes off pretty quickly, like a house on fire,” said Lachlan, who arrived with his brother in Vancouver on Monday after a 14-hour flight from Brisbane.

They’re part of a travelling contingent of sports fans from Australia and New Zealand who are in Vancouver for the World Cup.

Both nations punch well above their weight when it comes to sports fanaticism. Vancouver will get a taste this month thanks to a World Cup draw that will see three of their matches played in the city.

Vancouver’s first match for the tournament will see Australia play Turkey on Saturday. New Zealand plays at BC Place against Egypt on June 21 and Belgium on June 26.

With hundreds of thousands of followers on TikTok and Instagram, where they are known as “Those Carter Boys,” the brothers have turned their love of sport into a social media phenomenon, travelling the world to watch major sporting events while sharing a taste of Australian culture with their hosts.

In Vancouver, Lachlan said he’s confident the Socceroos, as Australia’s national men’s team is known, will have a “ripper” of a tournament.

“Boys, you’ve done all the work. The whole country’s behind you. Just rip in, give it a red-hot crack,” he said. “That Aussie spirit, it won’t let you down. We’re behind you 100 per cent, and so is the rest of the country.”

British Columbia is home to Canada’s biggest populations of Australians and New Zealanders.

Of the 25,200 people in Canada who claimed Australia as their birthplace in the 2021 census, 10,580 were living in B.C. Meanwhile, 5,100 of the 10,675 New Zealanders in Canada also were in the province.

Hayden Burford, who moved from New Zealand to Toronto seven years ago, said he was excited to visit Vancouver to watch the All Whites, New Zealand’s men’s soccer team.

He’s a member of the Flying Kiwis, the official supporters group for the New Zealand World Cup team. He said more than 4,000 members were travelling from New Zealand to Vancouver for the tournament.

“(That’s) quite big for a country of just over five million people,” he said. “So we’re going to have a lot of Kiwis in Vancouver. There’s already a lot of Kiwis who live in the area as well, so we’ll be connecting with them.”

Burford, who works for an Australian company that teaches Australia rules football and cricket in Toronto schools, said he got tickets through the Flying Kiwis for the New Zealand-Belgium match that were “reasonably priced” at $250.

Burford said the All Whites would be underdogs in all of their games. 

The All Whites are ranked lowest by FIFA among the 48 teams in the tournament, at 85th in the world. Australia — which has a longtime rivalry with New Zealand across many sports — is ranked 27th, just ahead of 30th-ranked Canada.

“I think people were happy that we got Belgium because we can really test ourselves, and hopefully there’s some momentum,” said Burford. 

Vancouver city Coun. Lucy Maloney, a dual Australian-Canadian citizen, said she would support the Socceroos — but if they ended up facing Canada, she’d cheer for her adopted home team as a “committed Canadian citizen.”

The former Melbourne resident said she is a huge soccer fan who was hoping to watch at least one game at BC Place with her family.

But if they can’t watch Saturday’s match in person, she said they would likely join other Aussies for a World Cup viewing party and concert at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver. 

Maloney said there is no shortage of Australians in Canada, particularly at ski resorts where many young Aussies are on working holidays.

Australians famously make up a big chunk of the seasonal workforce in the ski town of Whistler, B.C., sometimes known as “Whistralia,” where local lore says you can’t throw a snowball without hitting an Aussie.

“There are probably more Australians there than anywhere else in Canada, and I sometimes make a joke that there aren’t actually any Australians left in Australia because they’re all working at Whistler,” said Maloney.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun for Australians during FIFA in Vancouver.”

Lachlan Carter pointed out there are four popular football codes in Australia — Australia rules, rugby union, rugby league and soccer — and there is a perennial argument about which one is “actually footy.”

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Jen Zoratti | Next

Wednesdays

What's next in arts, life and pop culture.

Sign up for Jen Zoratti | Next

Sign Up

I consent to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies.

I consent to CASL agreement.

“But whilst the World Cup is on, football, soccer — that’s footy,” he said.

Bailey Carter had a message for fellow Aussies in Canada.

“Make sure you get it out there, and you’re bringing green and gold and cheering on the Socceroos as loud as you can. Get to anywhere you can to watch it, and it’ll be a great time,” said Bailey. 

He added he and his brother would be with them, chanting at the top of their lungs, “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 11, 2026.