Canada Soccer conducts Official Draw for the 2023 Canadian Championship

Canada Soccer conducted the Official Draw for the 2023 Canadian Championship via a live television show via OneSoccer on Tuesday 31 January. The Official Draw determined the Preliminary Round matchups as well as the potential home and away sides from the Quarter-Finals through to the Championship Final.

This year’s Canadian Championship features the biggest field of clubs and its earliest start date ever on 18 April 2023. With clubs spread from coast to coast across the nation, the annual “Battle of the North” will feature 14 clubs including reigning winners Vancouver Whitecaps FC and first-time participants Vancouver FC, Richmond’s TSS Rovers FC, and FC Laval.

Preliminary Round (18-20 April)
Match 1: TSS Rovers FC v Valour FC
Match 2: Pacific FC v Cavalry FC
Match 3: York United FC v Vancouver FC
Match 4: Forge FC Hamilton v FC Laval
Match 5: Halifax Wanderers FC v  Atlético Ottawa
Match 6: CF Montréal v Vaughan SC

Quarter-Final (9-11 May)
Match 7: Winner Match 2 v Winner Match 1
Match 8: Winner Match 3 v Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Match 9: Winner Match 5 v Winner Match 4
Match 10: Toronto FC v Winner Match 6

Semi-Final (23-25 May)
Match 11: Winner Match 7 v Winner Match 8
Match 12: Winner Match 10 v Winner Match 9

Final (6-8 June)
Match 13: Winner Match 11 v Winner Match 12

The dates and venues for the Preliminary Round will be announced in the coming days with the dates and venues for future rounds announced after each round.

About Canadian Championship
Canada Soccer’s Canadian Championship, also known as the Battle of the North, is the nation’s highest men’s domestic competition featuring clubs from coast to coast across the country, notably professional teams in Major League Soccer and the Canadian Premier League as well as league winners in League1 BC, League1 Ontario and Québec’s Premier League (Première ligue de soccer du Québec). Winners of the 2023 Canadian Championship lift the Voyageurs Cup and qualify to the annual international competition, Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League. Winners of the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League qualify for the FIFA Club World Cup.