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TORONTO—Liam Millar can't help but laugh.
Seated in a Toronto hotel during Canada's second-to-last World Cup preparation camp, as teammate Moïse Bombito plays piano nearby, the Hull City winger lets his thoughts drift to the division just below England's celebrated Premier League.
"The Championship is truly one of a kind," Millar says, after a lengthy pause. "It's a league where, honestly, you don't need to play beautiful soccer. You just need to know how to win, and I think we've mastered that at Hull City."
At 26, Millar is already a seasoned figure in English football. A former Liverpool academy product, he ventured to Switzerland with FC Basel before establishing himself in the English professional game, first in League One with Charlton Athletic, then the Championship with Preston North End and now Hull.
Liam Millar's long road back takes us to this moment, tonight!
Le long parcours de Liam Millar nous mène à ce moment, ce soir !#CANMNT pic.twitter.com/M5bbmrOODz
Opportunities for Canada, USMNT Stars
While Millar has spent nearly his entire professional career in England, the Championship has gained increasing appeal among North American players in the buildup to the 2026 World Cup.
Heading into the 2025–26 season, U.S. men's national team forwards Patrick Agyemang, Haji Wright and Daryl Dike had all secured spots in the league. During the winter transfer window, out-of-form Canadian striker Cyle Larin and standout MLS winger Ali Ahmed also made the move across the Atlantic.
In total, six Canadians and seven Americans are currently competing in the demanding English second tier. Five, including Millar, Ahmed, Larin, Agyemang, and Middlesbrough midfielder Aidan Morris, are part of the March international camps ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
"You don't always have to outplay the opposition," Millar says. "The Championship is tough, it's challenging, it's not easy ... Ali and Cyle are there now; they're both doing really well, but the longer it continues, the harder it becomes."
How the Championship Stacks Up
But what is it about the Championship that has drawn in these North Americans, all of whom believe they have genuine chances at a World Cup debut this summer?
On the surface, it's simply one of the strongest leagues in the world; however, look closer, and the physicality, its parallels to MLS and the lure of the Premier League all add to its appeal.
Opta's League Power Rankings measure the sport's global pecking order. In November, it placed the Championship 10th among the Top 30 leagues based on "advanced performance metrics," ranking it above the Dutch Eredivisie, the Turkish Süper Lig and MLS.
Ahmed, who netted a goal in Vancouver Whitecaps' 2025 MLS Cup defeat to Lionel Messi's Inter Miami, describes his new league as "brutal" and "cutthroat," having joined Norwich City in their battle to stave off League One relegation.
"We might not always play our best football, but we're learning how to win, and ultimately, that's what counts in the Championship," he said, having scored on his debut and now tallying four goals and three assists across his first 15 appearances with the Canaries.
"It's a different kind of challenge, but I'm genuinely enjoying the new league, and the pace and physicality is the ideal step for me to reach the next level and also prepare for the World Cup."
The Growth Environment for Strikers
While Millar and Ahmed have taken on the league with ambitions of starting on Canada's left flank at the World Cup, likely ahead of FC Bayern Munich left back Alphonso Davies, the Championship offers even more obvious opportunities for strikers.
Following a strong spell with 17 goals and six assists in 59 MLS appearances for Charlotte FC and an impressive showing at the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup with the USMNT, Derby County invested upwards of $8 million to sign Agyemang.
He has since climbed the USMNT striker rankings, netting 10 goals in his first 36 Derby County appearances and lifting the Rams into Premier League promotion playoff contention.
Meanwhile, Wright has 16 goals in 27 league matches and is in the running for the Golden Boot with Coventry City, who appear destined for the Premier League.
Agyemang, 25, has had to make full use of his long stride and imposing 6' 4" frame throughout the process.
"It was really the physicality aspect," Agyemang said of the adjustment. "It's extremely intense as well. In England, it was just very demanding.
"I've developed into the person and player I am today; it's been incredible. I feel myself improving in all areas, on and off the pitch, and I think that can obviously carry over and help the [national] team."
USMNT captain and Agyemang's former Charlotte teammate Tim Ream says he's watched the forward "grow up" through the rigors of the Championship, blossoming into a potential key weapon for the Stars and Stripes.
Larin Finally Finds a Fit
The most recent North American arrival in the Championship, Larin has also become the latest to flourish.
Having scored the second-highest total of goals in Canada's history, behind only Jonathan David, it had been several years since he ranked among Concacaf's elite forwards.
So, with encouragement from Canada manager Jesse Marsch, Larin made his move to Southampton—and the physically imposing striker has hit the ground running, with four goals and an assist in his first 11 appearances.
"I'm happy to be finding the net again," Larin said. "I went through a difficult stretch in my football career... nobody keeps scoring forever, and you can have your low points, and mine lasted longer than most."
Now back in the Canada camp as an experienced figure, having made his international debut in 2014, he is expected to start alongside David—the same partnership that guided Canada to its first World Cup since 1986 back in 2022.
"It was simply about finding the right environment for me, and so far that has been Southampton," Larin said. "...When I get minutes and play games, I score goals."
And now, he's fully committed not only to the dream of World Cup glory, but also to the ambition shared by every player in the Championship—the prospect of promotion and perhaps, as early as next season, performing under the glittering spotlight of the Premier League.