First match: FC Edmonton v Ottawa Fury FC
When FC Edmonton and Ottawa Fury FC take the pitch 11 May in the first leg of the 2016 Amway Canadian Championship, there is more at stake than simply the Voyageurs Cup. The start of Canada Soccer’s Amway Canadian Championship signals the beginning of an epic journey through Canada and the CONCACAF region with the goal of reaching the FIFA Club World Cup.
The Amway Canadian Championship is more than just a competition to earn Canadian bragging rights, it is a conduit to CONCACAF Champions League, and the only path for Canadian teams to play the best clubs in the world, such as reigning FIFA Club World Cup champions Barcelona FC.
A Canadian team has never won the CONCACAF Champions League or fought for club supremacy against the best in the world, but Impact Montréal FC came tantalizingly close in 2015. After tying Mexico’s storied Club América 1:1 at the famed Estadio Azteca in Mexico City in the first leg of the CONCACAF final, the Impact took the lead in the 8th minute of the second leg in front of 61,004 fans packed into Montréal’s Stade Olympique. In a match that will be remembered for years to come, the Impact looked like they would lift Canada into the FIFA Club World Cup for much of the match, before Club América converted three goals in 15 minutes to secure the win.
In April 2015, the Impact took fans through a rollercoaster of emotions as they battled for confederation’s title against Mexico’s top club. Now it is time for Canada’s five professional clubs to battle it out and earn the opportunity to show that Canada’s teams are in it to win it against the world’s best.
The 2016 Amway Canadian Championship again features Canada’s five professional clubs, with the winner earning a spot in the 2017-18 CONCACAF Champions League. FC Edmonton will face Ottawa Fury FC in the preliminary round, with the home-and-away series set for Wednesday nights 11 and 18 May. The winner will advance to the semi-final phase, to be played Wednesdays 1 and 8 June against last year’s Canadian champion Vancouver Whitecaps FC. In the other semi-final series, Toronto FC will face Impact Montréal FC. The two semi-final winners will then meet in the national final, to be played in the weeks of June 21 or 22 and June 28 or 29 (dates to be confirmed).
Catch the matches LIVE on TSN
The Amway Canadian Championship will be featured on TSN (with Impact Montréal FC matches also available on RDS). Following the preliminary Ottawa-Edmonton series in May that will be streamed on canadasoccer.com, every Amway Canadian Championship match will be televised coast to coast.
What you need to know:
About the Amway Canadian Championship
The ninth edition of the Amway Canadian Championship features Canada’s five professional clubs: Ottawa Fury FC (NASL), FC Edmonton (NASL), Impact Montréal FC (MLS), Toronto FC (MLS) and Vancouver Whitecaps FC (MLS).
Additional information on the competition format and the clubs’ rosters can be found on the Amway Canadian Championship official website at canadasoccer.com/championship.
Fans are encourage to follow @CanadaSoccerEN on Twitter using #canChamp for tournament updates, but also to connect with the five Canadian professional clubs involved for live match coverage (@OttawaFuryFC, @FCEdmontonNow, @impactmontreal, @torontofc, @WhitecapsFC). Match highlights and reports will be available on canadasoccer.com/championship as well as on CanadaSoccerTV.
Canada Soccer outlines return to soccer guidelines. The return to soccer guidelines provide member organizations with a five-step process, including a checklist of weighted questions known as the Return to Soccer Assessment Tool.