World Cup Friday—Heat, Crowds, and a Night Out.

Morning, T.O.—it's Friday and the sun's already got bite. We're hitting 20 degrees but it feels like 26, mostly cloudy skies, and the UV's sitting at 9 (that's high, so sunscreen's not a suggestion). You've got a solid 15 and a half hours of daylight, sunset at 8:59 p.m., so plan your evening accordingly.

First thing: the Rocket's gonna be busy today. We've got a collision on the 401 Eastbound Express at Bayview eating up two left lanes, and another one on the 427 North at Dundas with both shoulders and the left lane shut down. Nothing permanent—just budget extra time if you're heading that way. Eglinton East around Don Mills has some work going on too. Nothing major, but keep it in mind.

Today's the big one though: Canada's World Cup opener is happening at BMO Field at 3 p.m.—Bosnia & Herzegovina, Group B, Match 3. If you haven't grabbed tickets yet, the FIFA Fan Festival is running at Fort York and the Bentway starting at 12:30 p.m., so you can feel it before kickoff. (Note: the Fan Festival got cancelled Thursday because of lightning, but we're in the clear today.) This is the kind of day the whole city feels—might as well be part of it.

If you're looking at lunch before the match, the new wave of Mexican spots popping up across the 6ix is worth scoping out. Cactus Club's also running their summer menu right now with Frosé back and a nine-dollar smash burger that's not nothing. If brunch is your thing, there's a solid list of places worth the wait—Friday's peak season for that.

Evening-wise, you've got options. Live music is everywhere: Tim Hicks is at the Opera House at 7 p.m., We Aint Petty are at Rockpile Rock Bar same time, and if you want something different, there's theatre and exhibits running too—Casa Loma's got a new exhibit called Dressing the Abbey opening at 6:30 p.m. if you want to get cultured after the match.

Weather's perfect for being outside early, so get out there. Sunset's late enough that an evening walk is totally doable after whatever you're doing tonight. Enjoy the day—this is the weekend kicking in.