Sporting Kansas City midfielder Zorhan Bassong will return to the Canada Men’s National Team for two friendly matches against South American opponents during the FIFA international window in November.
Canada is slated to host Ecuador at 6:30 p.m. CT on Nov. 13 at BMO Field in Toronto before facing Venezuela at 7 p.m. CT on Nov. 18 at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Bassong has enjoyed a busy 2025 with Canada, receiving call-ups for all six men’s national team camps -- including the Concacaf Nations League Finals in March and the Concacaf Gold Cup in June -- and next week’s camp will mark a third straight month in which Bassong joins the Reds for international matches in preparation for FIFA World Cup 26.
Ranked No. 28 in the FIFA rankings, Canada has automatically qualified for the World Cup as a co-host alongside the United States and Mexico. The November FIFA window will see Canada battle No. 23 Ecuador at the home stadium of Toronto FC, where Canada will kick off their World Cup campaign next summer, before taking on No. 50 Venezuela at the home of Inter Miami CF in a rematch of their 2024 Copa America quarterfinal clash.
After making his first two senior international appearances in January 2020 at age 20, Bassong has earned five caps for Canada in 2025 with starts against Ukraine (4-2 win), and Curacao (1-1 tie) in June along with substitute appearances against Honduras (6-0 win) in June, Romania (3-0 win) in September and Colombia (0-0 tie) in October.
Bassong is coming off a strong second season with Sporting in 2025, starting in 19 of 26 appearances across all competitions. He scored his first professional goal at FC Cincinnati on April 26 and recorded assists in a 3-3 home draw against the New England Revolution on May 24 and a 3-1 road win at Houston Dynamo FC on May 31. Bassong donned the captain’s armband for the first time on Aug. 16 at Orlando City SC and added his third assist of the year on Aug. 24 at Seattle Sounders FC.
Capable of playing as a central midfielder or a left back, Bassong played 25 competitive matches in his debut season for Sporting in 2024. He logged his first 17 appearances at left back before transitioning to a central midfield role and helping Kansas City reach the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final.
Born in Toronto and raised in Montreal, Bassong moved to Belgium in 2013 to join the Mouscron academy. Bassong furthered his development in the heralded academy systems at Belgian side Anderlecht and French club Lille, beginning his professional career at the latter in 2016.
In three years with Lille B from 2016-2019, Bassong logged 31 appearances and over 2,100 minutes. He joined Belgian outfit Cercle Brugge in January 2019 and left the club in July 2020.
Bassong enjoyed a two-year MLS stint with CF Montreal that began in early 2021. He played 26 regular season matches in his debut MLS campaign and added an assist in Montreal’s run to the 2021 Canadian Championship title, appearing in every match of the tournament. Bassong played 14 more matches in all competitions the following year—including two in the 2022 Concacaf Champions League and two in the Canadian Championship—as he helped Montreal set a club record for regular season wins (20) and points (65).
Following his time with Montreal, Bassong spent 2023 with two Romanian clubs, Arges Pitesti (10 matches) and Farul Constanta (two matches). He signed for Sporting on Dec. 12, 2023.
