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CANWNT VS JAPAN INTERNATIONAL SERIES ANNOUNCEMENT
Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team (CANWNT) will close out the 2025 calendar year with a two-match series against Japan during the November FIFA international window. The two sides, ranked 8th (Japan) and 9th (Canada) in the FIFA World Rankings, will meet on Saturday 29 November and Tuesday 2 December in Nagasaki, Japan.
The opening match of the series will take place at Nagasaki Stadium City (Peace Stadium), followed three days later by the second fixture at Transcosmos Stadium Nagasaki in nearby Isahaya. Kick-off times for both matches are to be confirmed.
“We’re excited for the opportunity to face Japan. These are the kind of challenges we want as we build toward our 2026 World Cup qualification journey. Japan is one of the most technically gifted and tactically disciplined teams in the world, and playing them on their home soil will demand the best from us. We’re looking forward to the opportunity and the lessons it will bring.”
Casey Stoney, Women’s National Team Head Coach
Canada and Japan share a rich competitive history, having faced each other 16 times at the senior international “A” level since their first meeting in 1995. The two nations last met at the 2023 SheBelieves Cup, where Japan earned a 3:0 victory. Canada’s most recent win over Japan came at the 2018 Algarve Cup. Overall, Canada holds a record of four wins, four draws, and eight losses in the series.
The matches against Japan will air live on OneSoccer, available on the fuboTV Canada streaming service platform, as a linear channel on TELUS Optik TV (Ch. 980), as well as online at OneSoccer.ca and through the OneSoccer app. Fans will find extended coverage across Canada Soccer’s digital channels on Instagram, X, Facebook, BlueSky, TikTok, and YouTube featuring the hashtag #CANWNT.
CANADA SOCCER AND FIFA+ BROUGHT PDP CHAMPIONSHIP TO A GLOBAL AUDIENCE
The final day of Canada Soccer’s 2025 Player-Development Program Championship in Vaughan was streamed live on FIFA+, showcasing some of the best youth talent from across the country competing at the U-17 and U-15 levels. Additionally, all group stage matches from the PDP U-17 Cup were broadcasted live on FIFA+, with the preliminary portion of the U-15 competition having been streamed on Canada Soccer’s YouTube channel.
As part of Canada Soccer’s Youth Competitions Network, the annual PDP Championship brought together the top youth teams from Canada’s four standards-based leagues: the BC Soccer Premier League, the Alberta Player-Development League, the Ontario Player-Development League, and the Québec Youth Soccer Premier League (PLSJQ). Each league qualified two teams in each of the four divisions, thus bringing together 32 teams across the five-day event from 27-31 August in Vaughan, Ontario.
Canada Soccer’s Player-Development Program features a network of standards-based programs that represent high-level amateur youth soccer in Canada. Participating organisations, both clubs and academies, all meet the requirements for standards-based programming including recognition as an active National Youth Club Licensee.
Since its launch, FIFA+ has continued to reach a wider audience and develop new and exciting content to offer a truly global digital football experience. This exposure will continue to promote the development of youth football in Canada.
CANCHAMP SEMI-FINAL MATCHUPS ARE UNDERWAY
The first legs of the TELUS Canadian Championship Semi-Finals were played on 13 August, setting the stage for decisive second-leg matches to decide who competes for the 2025 Voyageurs Cup.
In Hamilton, Forge FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC played to a 2:2 draw at Tim Hortons Field. Nana Opoku Ampomah opened the scoring for Forge in the 10th minute before Tristan Blackmon equalized for Vancouver eight minutes later. Brian White then gave the Whitecaps the lead in the 29th minute, but Forge responded quickly through Brian Wright in the 34th. Neither side found a breakthrough in the second half, leaving the series level heading into the return leg at BC Place in Vancouver.
In Langley, Vancouver FC earned a 3:1 home victory over Atlético Ottawa. Michel Cavalcante scored the opening goal for Vancouver in the 21st minute before Sam Salter equalized for Ottawa early in the second half. Hugo Mbongue restored Vancouver’s lead in the 69th minute and Nicolás Mezquida added a third in stoppage time. The result gives Vancouver FC a two-goal advantage heading into the second leg at TD Place in Ottawa.
The second-leg Semi-Final matches in September will determine the matchup for the 2025 TELUS Canadian Championship Final.
CANADA SOCCER’S CLUB+ PROGRAM WELCOMES MORE THAN 235 COMMUNITY CLUBS NATIONWIDE
Canada Soccer is pleased to announce strong early momentum for Club+, the multi-year initiative designed to support community clubs across the country. Since its launch, more than 235 clubs have already joined the program, gaining access to tools and resources that will help them grow, engage their communities, and convert FIFA World Cup 2026™ momentum into lasting grassroots participation.
“Club+ represents our commitment to supporting our membership, and at this key moment for soccer in Canada, we want to ensure every Club, regardless of size or location, has the tools to thrive. By centralizing resources and connecting clubs directly to experts, we’re supporting communities to turn World Cup excitement into sustainable participation.”
Sara McConaghy, Director, Community Development at Canada Soccer
Club+ is designed for community club operators and organizers – the people who make soccer happen at the local level. Over the next two years, the program will continue to expand its reach, with a goal of supporting more than 1,500 community clubs nationwide by equipping them with practical resources to recruit players, coaches, and referees.
Key Features of Club+:
Community clubs interested in joining Club+ can register today at clubplus.canadasoccer.com.
COACHING B-DIPLOMA PROGRAM AND CONCACAF UPGRADES DELIVERED
Canada Soccer continues to advance coaching education across the country with the successful delivery of three B-Diploma programs this August, alongside the inaugural launch of the new CONCACAF Upgrade Program.
Two of the B-Diploma programs were hosted in Ontario, with another in British Columbia, bringing together nearly 100 coaches and 10 coach developers. The initiative reflects Canada Soccer’s commitment to strengthening the national coaching pathway and supporting player development from grassroots to high performance.
Three additional B-Diploma deliveries are scheduled for later this year in Calgary and Montréal, including a dedicated AccelerateHER women’s-only stream designed to provide increased opportunities for female coaches.
Participants in the program engage in both classroom and on-field learning, with content grounded in Canada Soccer’s modern coach education framework. Core elements include the Enskilment Approach, Session Methodology, Transformational Coaching Theory, and Canada Soccer’s Coaching Process Framework. Coaches also learn to analyze and teach the game through the lens of System–Strategy–Tactics–Skill Sets.
In parallel, Canada Soccer launched the first-ever CONCACAF Upgrade cohort, an initiative delivered fully online. The upgrade process allows coaches with existing or expiring licences from the previous Canadian pathway to transition into the new CONCACAF Coaching Convention framework. Over a four-month period, candidates complete independent learning modules, submit a portfolio of work, and participate in a final debrief with a coach developer to ensure understanding. Midway through its first cycle, the program has already demonstrated strong success, with the new digital system built to support it performing effectively.
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