A young player from the 91原创-based Vancouver Football Club (VFC) is on his way to South America to play a little soccer next week.

James Cameron, a 19-year-old defender with the Eagles (the nickname for VFC), was called up to play for Canada in a series of international "friendlies" or exhibition games.

Last week, the North Vancouver player was called to represent Canada鈥檚 U-20 Men鈥檚 National team in a series of international friendlies taking place later this month in La Calera, Chile.

Canada will face hosts Chile on Wednesday, June 19, followed by Ecuador on Friday, June 21, and Paraguay on Sunday, June 23.

These matches will serve as key preparation for Canada ahead of the 2024 U-20 Concacaf Championship which is set to run from Friday, July 19, to Sunday, Aug. 4, in Mexico.

Cameron, who turned 19 in January, was a member of Canada鈥檚 U-20 squad who qualified for the Championship in February of this year.

The tournament was Cameron鈥檚 first call up to international duty and he appeared in all three of Canada鈥檚 matches, including one start and registered a combined 146 minutes played. 
 
Canada will make its 25th appearance in the Concacaf Championship with the nation previously claiming the title in 1986 and 1996. This year, Canada was drawn into Group B and will face Honduras, El Salvador, and last year鈥檚 tournament runners-up Dominican Republic. The championship acts as a qualifier for the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup, where only the top four teams will advance to the bi-annual tournament.
 
For Vancouver, Cameron has made 24 appearances across all competitions since the club鈥檚 inauguration, including five so far in 2024.

He has registered 1,595 minutes played in all Canadian Premier League (CPL) competition, which contributes to Vancouver鈥檚 league-mandated domestic U-21 minutes. Cameron scored his first professional goal on Sept. 9, 2023 against Atl茅tico Ottawa and was nominated for the CPL鈥檚 Best Canadian U-21 player award in October 2023.
 
Fans will find coverage of the June friendlies on Vancouver FC鈥檚 digital channels under the handle @vanfootballclub.

Midfielder plays for Haiti, again

Meanwhile, Vancouver FC forward Mikael Cantave just wrapped up his first international call up to the Haitian Men鈥檚 National team in 2024, where he participated in the country鈥檚 first set of FIFA World Cup 26 Concacaf Qualifiers in Barbados last week.

鈥淚 am very honoured to be called up to represent Haiti in these qualifying matches,鈥� Cantave said ahead of his travels.

鈥淚t is every soccer player鈥檚 dream to represent their country on the global stage and I鈥檝e been fortunate enough to live out those dreams throughout my career. I鈥檓 very grateful for these opportunities and I鈥檓 excited to help Haiti on the road to the FIFA 2026 World Cup.鈥�
 
Haiti was drawn into Group C for the second round of World Cup qualification for Concacaf with Curacao, St. Lucia, Barbados, and Aruba in March 2024.

In their first game, Haiti defeated St. Lucia by a score of 2-1, then defeated the hosting Barbados team, 3-1, to win their second qualifier.

Haiti鈥檚 next set of matches will be against Curacao and Aruba in June 2025. 
 
Prior to last week's play in Barbados, Cantave, 27, represented Haiti in October 2023 for two games in League A of the Concacaf Nations League group stage.

The VFC attacker registered 145 minutes between the two matches and scored his second international goal in Haiti鈥檚 1-1 draw against Suriname.
 
Cantave has 13 caps for Haiti, the country of his father鈥檚 birth, since making his international debut in 2018.

He scored his first goal for the nation at the 2018 Concacaf Nations League qualification and also has an assist in international competition which he registered in the 2021 Concacaf World Cup qualification.
 
For Vancouver, Cantave has made 24 appearances across all competitions since joining the Eagles at the end of June 2023, including playing in all eight of VFC鈥檚 matches this season.

He has scored four goals and registered two assists throughout his time with Vancouver.
 
Cantave was not available for the Sunday, June 9 match, when the Eagles tied the visiting York United FC, 2-2.

But he is expected back for this weekend's first instalment of the CPL 鈥極n Tour鈥� series, being hosted at the Apple Bowl Stadium in Kelowna this Sunday afternoon, June 16.