Local Connections at 2026 Women’s World Lacrosse Championship

By Mark Stehlin

The Women’s World Lacrosse Championship will take place in Tokyo, Japan from July 24 to August 2, 2026. This event is held every four years and showcases elite talent as nations compete for the world title. This year’s event will feature teams from 16 countries and Canada enters the tournament ranked #2 in the world.  They have been placed in a group with Australia, Germany and Wales.

Local fans of the Brooklin Lacrosse Club (BLC) and the Brooklin Merchants will recognize the names Perroni and Baxter. Nicole Perroni is the daughter of former Brooklin Redmen legend Eric and sister of Adam who played with the Redmen, BLC, and now the Brooklin Merchants. Maddy Baxter’s brother Robbie graduated from the Whitby Warriors and, in his rookie year, is the leading scorer with the  Merchants with 38 points that ranks him third in league scoring. 

“I’m excited about this year and representing Canada. I know that with a younger group I have an opportunity to show some of my leadership skills on the field with my play,” said Perroni.

Perroni is no stranger to representing her country in lacrosse. She played for Team Canada at the 2019 U19 World Cup earning a silver medal. In 2022, Perroni earned a gold medal with Team Canada at the World Games before winning her second silver medal in the 2022 Senior World Cup. In 2025, she traveled to Chengdu, China for the Sixes World Games where Canada took home the silver medal.

“The team this year is a mix of youth and veterans with a number of new faces. There is a great deal of college talent and some of the players chosen this year have tried out before. Maddy is my best friend so it’s great that we will get to play together for Team Canada,” said Perroni.

“We leave for Japan on Saturday July 18th. Prior to that we will gather at Oshawa Civic Fields on July 16th and 17th for some pre-tournament training sessions,” added Perroni.

Canada will open their tournament on Saturday July 25, 2026 when they face Australia in pool play. They will meet Germany on the 26th of July and end pool play on July 28th against Wales. The medal games will be featured on Saturday August 2, 2026.

Fans can follow all the results via Lacrosse Canada social media channels and www.lacrosse.ca