Canada Soccer kicks off 2021 Canadian Championship

Canada Soccer’s top domestic club competition, the Canadian Championship, will kick off on 15 August with all matches of the 2021 competition carried LIVE on OneSoccer.ca.  Canadian Premier League (CanPL) sides FC Edmonton and Cavalry FC play the first of five single-elimination Preliminary Round matches at Clarke Stadium in Edmonton, AB with the winner moving forward to face the winner of CanPL’s Pacific FC and Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Vancouver Whitecaps FC match that will be the final match in the Preliminary Round on 26 August at Starlight Stadium in Langford, BC.

CanPL’s Atletico Ottawa make their Canadian Championship debut playing host to league rivals Valour FC at Ottawa’s TD Place in one of two matches on 21 Aug. The winner of the match will move forward to face Forge FC. York United FC will host League1 Ontario’s 2019 Champions Master’s Futbol Academy at York Lions Stadium in the afternoon fixture on 21 Aug with the winner moving forward to face Toronto FC. HFX Wanderers FC play host to 2019 Première ligue de soccer du Québec (PLSQ) champions AS Blainville on 17 Aug for a chance at 2019 Canadian Championship winners CF Montréal in the Quarter-Final Round.

“We are excited to present the 2021 Canadian Championship with all 13 participating clubs that were due to compete in the 2020 Canadian Championship and we remain committed to hosting a one-match Final to determine the winner of the Voyageurs Cup for the 2020 Canadian Championship,” said Dr. Nick Bontis, Canada Soccer President. “The single-elimination format in 2021 will provide thrilling matchups based on regional travel realities and continue to build fierce rivalries on the pathway to bragging rights as the Canadian Championship winner and entrant into the Concacaf Champions League competition.”

The Quarter-Final Round is set to take place between 14-22 Sept , however, all scheduling past the Preliminary Round will be confirmed pending league schedule confirmation and public health guidelines.

The Canadian Championship is the highest domestic club competition and leads to a direct entry into the 2022 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League with an opportunity to play in the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup. The current champions are CF Montréal who won the 2019 Canadian Championship.

At the completion of the competition, the tournament MVP is named as the George Gross Memorial Trophy Award winner. The reigning MVP is Ignacio Piatti. Added to the competition in 2019 the Young Canadian Player Award is awarded to the best Canadian player in the competition 21 years of age or under. The reigning Young Canadian is Zachary Brault-Guillard.

Fans can follow the Canadian Championship at the official home of the competition:  migmultidev-canada-soccer.pantheonsite.io/canadian-championship and across Canada Soccer’s social media channels by following #CanChamp.