Nora Fatehi kickstarts FIFA World Cup in Canada with grand opening ceremony

The scoreboard at Toronto's BMO Field hadn’t even lit up for kickoff, but the stadium was already shaking to a massive homecoming beat. Local girl turned global Bollywood icon Nora Fatehi took center stage on Friday night, officially launching Canada's portion of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with an explosive opening ceremony performance.

The Canadian-born artist of Moroccan descent marked her homecoming by debuting her official FIFA anthem, Siir Siir, a high-octane track created alongside collaborators Vegedream and Sanjoy. The lively song reflects her own multicultural identity, effortlessly blending Moroccan Darija, Arabic, French, and English into a single rhythmic tapestry.

The anthem's title is directly borrowed from a famous Moroccan football chant that translates to "go, go." Fatehi explained that she chose this specific hook hoping it would become a universal rallying cry, uniting diverse fanbases across the globe regardless of which country they are backing this summer.

The street-level roots of the game heavily inspired the project, with the track's music video filmed entirely on location in Morocco. The visuals consciously focus on neighborhood kids playing



street soccer, capturing the raw journey of how football evolves from dusty local alleyways to the world's most glamorous mega-arenas.

Fatehi's stunning performance officially adds her name to a heavy-hitting roster of musical superstars driving the pop culture side of this expanded tournament. FIFA has gone all out for the historic multi-nation event, curating a massive 18-song official soundtrack featuring some of the biggest names in the global music industry.

The musical celebrations actually kicked off 24 hours earlier at the iconic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, setting a very high bar for the rest of the tournament. On Thursday night, Colombian pop royalty Shakira headlined a star-studded show alongside Afrobeats heavyweight Burna Boy, reggaeton star J Balvin, and South African vocalist Tyla right before Mexico's 2-0 win over South Africa.

While Shakira and Burna Boy got the party started in Mexico with their collaborative track Dai Dai, Fatehi successfully holds down the northern front in Toronto. With the opening ceremonies wrapped up and the anthems delivered, the stadium microphones are finally being swapped for referee whistles as the actual football takes over.