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Maple the Moose, sporting a lime green headband between its antlers, stands for Canada, alongside Mexico’s Zayu the Jaguar in dark green and U.S.‘s Clutch the Eagle in blue.

Each mascot was “thoughtfully developed to reflect the vibrant culture, heritage and spirit of their respective countries, coming together to symbolize unity, diversity and the shared passion for the beautiful game,” according to a press release from FIFA. 

It is the first time three nations are co-hosting the tournament. º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøand Vancouver are slated to host the 13 games scheduled on Canadian soil. 

“The ‘26 team has just got bigger — and more fun!” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in the release. “Maple, Zayu and Clutch are full of joy, energy and the spirit of togetherness, just like the FIFA World Cup itself.” 

Maple is described as a dedicated goalkeeper, as well as a music enthusiast and street style-loving artist. 

“With a knack for making legendary saves and a heart full of strength and leadership, Maple combines endless stories and unstoppable flair,” the release reads. 

Mexico’s Zayu is described as a striker who embraces Mexican dance and food off the pitch, while the U.S.‘s Clutch has been named a sports-loving midfielder with a passion for adventure.

FIFA announced that the mascots will also be the first to be playable in the FIFA Heroes video game, which will launch next year. The game is aimed at making “digital football accessible to more fans,” the association said. 

In the game, players can stack their squads with past and present FIFA mascots, soccer’s biggest players and popular fictional characters from TV shows and movies. 

The FIFA World Cup will take place from June 11 to July 19 next year. 

Maple will join the ranks of other mascots who have represented Canada as a host nation in international sporting competitions. 

When º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøhosted the Pan Am/Parapan Am Games in 2015, the mascot was Pachi the porcupine — originally designed by four Grade 8 students from Markham, according to a 2013 from Wheelchair Basketball Canada. Pachi had 41 quills, each representing a country participating in the Games, and like other porcupines, had impaired vision. 

When Vancouver hosted the Winter Olympics in 2010, the two official mascots were sasquatch Quatchi and sea bear Miga, both mythical creatures from the tales of Indigenous Peoples on the West Coast, according to information from the . Mukmuk was also a beloved but an unofficial mascot of the Vancouver Olympics, who was based on a endangered type of marmot that lives only on an island in the Vancouver region.

In 1994, Victoria hosted the Commonwealth Games, with a killer whale mascot. Klee Wych, a name that broadly translates to “the laughing one” in the language of the local Nuu-chah Nulth Peoples, symbolized the beauty and vitality of British Columbia, according to the of Commonwealth Sport Canada.

At the Edmonton Commonwealth Games in 1978, the mascot was Keyano, which means “unity and brotherhood” in Cree, according to the Commonwealth Sport Canada’s website. Keyano was a Swan Hills grizzly bear, an animal with shaggy brown fur only found in the region of Swan Hills, Alta.