Canada's Ismael Kone Carted Off After Gruesome Injury During World Cup Match vs. Qatar

Team Canada midfielder Ismaël Koné was carted off the field after suffering what appeared to be a serious lower leg injury during the second half of Thursday's 2026 FIFA World Cup match against Qatar in Vancouver.

Koné suffered the injury in the 53rd minute on a tackle that resulted in Qatar's Assim Madibo being shown a red card.

He waved to the crowd as he was carried off the field on a stretcher.

Nathan Saliba later held Koné's jersey up after scoring in the 64th minute to put Canada up by four goals.

The play resulted in the second red card of the game for Qatar, who had seen Homam Ahmed sent off in the 33rd minute.

There were nine minutes of stoppage time added after the second half following the injury delay. Canada's Jonathan David took advantage of the extra time by completing a hat trick.

Canada ultimately claimed a 6-0 win over Qatar to overtake Switzerland for the Group B lead.

Koné, who celebrated his 24th birthday on Tuesday, plays for the Serie A club Sassuolo. He had appeared in 41 career matches for Canada heading into Thursday.

Head coach Jesse Marsch referred to Koné as an "X factor" for his team's offense ahead of Canada's World Cup opener in Toronto, per The Athletic's Joshua Kloke.

Despite a scare regarding a possible wrist injury suffered in a friendly against Ireland earlier this month, Koné was named Superior Player of the Match after helping Canada open the tournament last Saturday with a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto.

Thursday's win against Qatar marked Canada's first ever World Cup victory. Canada might now be tasked with continuing without Koné when the team resumes group stage action Wednesday against Switzerland in Vancouver.