2020 Canadian Premier League season

The 2020 Canadian Premier League season was the second season of the Canadian Premier League (CPL), the top level of Canadian soccer.

Canadian Premier League
Season2020
DatesAugust 13 – September 6, 2020 (first stage)
September 9–15, 2020 (group stage)
September 19, 2020 (final)
ChampionsForge FC
Regular season winnersNot awarded
CONCACAF LeagueForge FC
Matches played35
Goals scored92 (2.63 per match)
Top goalscorerAkeem Garcia
(6 goals)
Best goalkeeperTriston Henry
(5 shutouts)
Biggest home winHFX Wanderers 0–5 Pacific FC
(September 15)
Highest scoring5 goals
York9 FC 3–2 Forge FC
(August 26)
HFX Wanderers 0–5 Pacific FC
(September 15)
Longest winning run3 matches
Cavalry FC
(August 16–23)
Forge FC
(September 12–19)
Longest unbeaten run6 matches
York9 FC
(August 15 – September 1)
HFX Wanderers FC
(August 26 – September 12)
Forge FC
(August 30 – September 19)
Longest winless run7 matches
FC Edmonton
(August 16 – September 6)
Longest losing run4 matches
FC Edmonton
(August 26 – September 6)
← 2019
2021 →

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the CPL announced a 14-day hold on all pre-season training on March 13, 2020.[1] On March 20, the league announced that it would be postponing the start of the season from the previously scheduled date of April 11.[2]

A shortened 2020 season tournament, branded as The Island Games, was played at the University of Prince Edward Island from August 13 to September 19. All players were required to self-isolate for 14 days before travelling, self-isolate for five more days upon arrival, and receive two negative COVID-19 tests before being allowed to play. As of July 29, PEI had the lowest number of COVID-19 cases among provinces, at 36.[3][4][5]

Initially, all matches were held behind closed doors. On August 8, the league announced a partnership with the province and PEI Soccer to allow 50 minor soccer players per game to attend matches.[6]

Atlético Ottawa joined the league as its first expansion team, bringing the total number of teams to eight. Hamilton's Forge FC defended their inaugural CPL title, blanking HFX Wanderers FC 2–0 in the final.

Overview

Teams
Location of the 2020 Canadian Premier League season (green) and the homes of the eight teams (red)

The seven teams that participated in the inaugural 2019 Canadian Premier League season were set to compete in this season. They were joined by Atlético Ottawa, an expansion team who were created after USL Championship side Ottawa Fury FC suspended operations after being unable to secure approval from USSF and CONCACAF.[7][8][9]

Personnel and sponsorship
Team Head coach Captain(s) Shirt sponsor Kit manufacturer
Atlético Ottawa Spain Mista Canada Ben Fisk OneSoccer Macron
Cavalry England Tommy Wheeldon Jr. Canada Nik Ledgerwood WestJet
FC Edmonton Canada Jeff Paulus England Tomi Ameobi Swoop
Forge Canada Bobby Smyrniotis Canada Kyle Bekker Tim Hortons
HFX Wanderers Trinidad and Tobago Stephen Hart Trinidad and Tobago Andre Rampersad Volkswagen
Pacific Norway Pa-Modou Kah Canada Marcel de Jong Volkswagen
Valour England Rob Gale Canada Dylan Carreiro OneSoccer
York9 Canada Jimmy Brennan Canada Manny Aparicio Macron

Coaching changes
Team Outgoing coach Manner of
departure		 Date of
vacancy		 Position in table Incoming coach Date of
appointment
Pacific Canada James Merriman end of interim period January 14, 2020 pre-season Norway Pa-Modou Kah January 14, 2020
Atlético Ottawa N/A (inaugural season) January 29, 2020 Spain Mista February 11, 2020

Original format

Before being postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the regular season was intended to be played from April 11 to October 4. The split-season format of the inaugural season was to be replaced by a single table and full double round-robin. The eight teams would have met their rivals twice at home and twice away for a total of 28 games, the same number as in 2019.[10] The top ranked team in the regular season would have qualified for a spot in the championship final and would have been joined by the winner of a playoff between the second and third ranked teams.[11]

First stage

The eight teams played against each other once each for a total of seven matches. The top four teams advanced to the group stage.

Table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Cavalry 7 4 1 2 10 7 +3 13 Advance to group stage
2 HFX Wanderers 7 3 3 1 12 7 +5 12[lower-alpha 1]
3 Forge 7 3 3 1 13 9 +4 12[lower-alpha 1]
4 Pacific 7 3 2 2 10 8 +2 11
5 York9 7 2 4 1 8 7 +1 10
6 Valour 7 2 2 3 8 9 −1 8[lower-alpha 2]
7 Atlético Ottawa 7 2 2 3 7 12 −5 8[lower-alpha 2]
8 FC Edmonton 7 0 1 6 5 14 −9 1
Source: CanPL.ca
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) goal differential; 4) goals for; 5) total wins; 6) U-21 minutes; 7) coin toss or drawing of lots.[12]
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head points: HFX Wanderers 1, Forge 1. Goal differential: HFX Wanderers +5, Forge +4
  2. Head-to-head points: Valour 3, Atlético Ottawa 0.

Group stage

The four group stage teams met their opponents once each. The top two teams advanced to the final.

Table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Forge 3 2 1 0 4 1 +3 7 Advance to final
2 HFX Wanderers 3 1 1 1 3 7 −4 4
3 Cavalry 3 1 0 2 4 4 0 3
4 Pacific 3 1 0 2 6 5 +1 3
Source: CanPL.ca
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) goal differential; 4) goals for; 5) total wins; 6) U-21 minutes; 7) coin toss or drawing of lots.[13]

Final
Main article: 2020 Canadian Premier League Final
Forge FC2–0HFX Wanderers FC
 Report
Attendance: 50
Referee: Juan Márquez

Statistical leaders
See also: Canadian Premier League records and statistics § Player records — career

Shutouts

Rank Player Club Shutouts
1 Canada Triston Henry Forge FC 5
2 Canada Marco Carducci Cavalry FC 3
3 Canada Nathan Ingham York9 2
Canada Christian Oxner HFX Wanderers
Canada James Pantemis Valour FC
Spain Nacho Zabal Atlético Ottawa
7 Canada Callum Irving Pacific FC 1
Canada Nolan Wirth Pacific FC

Source:[14]

Player transfers

Main article: Canadian Premier League transfers 2020

U Sports Draft

Further information: 2019 CPL–U Sports Draft

The 2019 CPL–U Sports Draft was held on November 11 in Montreal, Quebec. Draftees were invited to team preseason camps, with an opportunity to earn a developmental contract and retain their U Sports men's soccer eligibility. HFX Wanderers selected Cory Bent with the first overall pick. Two players were selected by each returning CPL team, with a total of 14 players being drafted including 10 Canadians.[15] Ottawa had not yet joined the league and did not participate in the draft.

Foreign players

Canadian Premier League teams may sign a maximum of seven international players, out of which only five can be in the starting line-up for each match. The following players are considered foreign players for the 2020 season. This list does not include Canadian citizens who represent other countries at the international level.[16]

Club Player 1 Player 2 Player 3 Player 4 Player 5 Player 6 Player 7
Atlético Ottawa England Vashon Neufville Jamaica Tevin Shaw Mexico Francisco Acuña Ghana Bernardinho Spain Nacho Zabal Spain Viti Martínez
Cavalry England Jordan Brown Honduras José Escalante England Nathan Mavila Brazil Oliver Peru Jair Córdova Brazil Richard Luca
FC Edmonton Cameroon Jeannot Esua Trinidad and Tobago Kareem Moses Spain Ramón Soria South Korea Son Yong-chan Sweden Erik Zetterberg
Forge Sweden Alexander Achinioti-Jönsson Senegal Elimane Cissé Belgium Daniel Krutzen Belgium Paolo Sabak
HFX Wanderers Trinidad and Tobago Akeem Garcia Trinidad and Tobago Andre Rampersad Germany Peter Schaale Jamaica Alex Marshall Brazil João Morelli Brazil Eriks Santos England Cory Bent
Pacific Mexico Alejandro Díaz
Valour Spain José Galán Ghana Solomon Kojo Antwi Haiti Andrew Jean-Baptiste New Zealand Moses Dyer Republic of the Congo Arnold Bouka Moutou
York9 Japan Wataru Murofushi Brazil Gabriel Vasconcelos Japan Fugo Segawa Spain Álvaro Rivero

Players in italic denote players new to their respective clubs for the 2020 season, sorted chronologically by their announcement.

Awards

Canadian Premier League Awards

The nominees for the four CPL awards were announced on September 18, one day before the league final.[17] The awards take into account all matches from The Island Games and are voted on by reporters across Canada. The winners were announced at a ceremony on November 26, 2020.[18]

2020 Canadian Premier League Awards
AwardRecipientFinalists
Golden BootTrinidad and Tobago Akeem Garcia (HFX Wanderers)N/A
Golden GloveCanada Triston Henry (Forge)Canada Christian Oxner (HFX Wanderers)
Canada Callum Irving (Pacific)
Coach of the YearTrinidad and Tobago Stephen Hart (HFX Wanderers)Canada Bobby Smyrniotis (Forge)
Spain Mista (Atlético Ottawa)
Player of the YearCanada Kyle Bekker (Forge)Canada Marco Bustos (Pacific)
Trinidad and Tobago Akeem Garcia (HFX Wanderers)
Best Under 21 Canadian Player of the YearCanada Mohamed Farsi (Cavalry)Canada Chrisnovic N'sa (HFX Wanderers)
Canada Julian Dunn (Valour)

Team of the Week

The Gatorade Team of the Week is selected by OneSoccer staff.[19]

Dates Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards Ref
August
13–16		 Canada Henry (Forge) Canada Awuah (Forge)
Belgium Krutzen (Forge)
Canada Zator (Cavalry)
Canada Northover (Cavalry)		 Mexico Acuña (Ottawa)
Sweden Achinioti-Jönsson (Forge)
Canada Bekker (Forge)		 Canada Bustos (Pacific)
Canada Haber (Cavalry)
Canada Farsi (Cavalry)		 [19]
August
18–23		 Canada Pantemis (Valour) Canada Mavila (Cavalry)
Canada Boskovic (Cavalry)
Canada Dunn (Valour)
Canada Chung (Pacific)		 Mali Sissoko (HFX)
Mexico Acuña (Ottawa)
Canada Bekker (Forge)		 Canada Boakai (Edmonton)
England Brown (Cavalry)
Trinidad and Tobago Garcia (HFX)		 [20]
August
25–30		 Canada Oxner (HFX) Canada Haynes (Pacific)
Belgium Krutzen (Forge)
Germany Schaale (HFX)
Canada Chung (Pacific)		 Canada Di Chiara (York)
Trinidad and Tobago Rampersad (HFX)
Canada Dixon (Pacific)		 Canada Blasco (Pacific)
Mexico Díaz (Pacific)
Canada Bustos (Pacific)		 [21]
September
1–6		 Canada Oxner (HFX) Canada Levis (Valour)
Canada Geffrard (HFX)
Canada Zator (Cavalry)
Canada Chung (Pacific)		 Canada Aparicio (York)
New Zealand Dyer (Valour)
Mexico Acuña (Ottawa)		 Canada Riggi (HFX)
Trinidad and Tobago Garcia (HFX)
Canada Bustos (Pacific)		 [22]
September
7–13		 Canada Henry (Forge) Canada N'sa (HFX)
Belgium Krutzen (Forge)
Canada Zator (Cavalry)
Canada Restrepo (HFX)		 Sweden Achinioti-Jönsson (Forge)
Belgium Sabak (Forge)
England Simmons (Cavalry)		 Brazil Morelli (HFX)
Trinidad and Tobago Garcia (HFX)
Canada Farsi (Cavalry)		 [23]
September
14–20		 Canada Henry (Forge) Canada Awuah (Forge)
Belgium Krutzen (Forge)
Canada Meilleur-Giguère (Pacific)
Canada Samuel (Forge)		 Canada Baldisimo (Pacific)
Canada Bekker (Forge)
Sweden Achinioti-Jönsson (Forge)		 Canada Riggi (HFX)
Canada Babouli (Forge)
Canada Bustos (Pacific)		 [24]

Media

OneSoccer broadcast all matches of the tournament. CBC Television televised nine matches on Saturdays, and CHCH-TV in Hamilton broadcast Sunday matches.[25] To visually enhance the venue for broadcast as it is only a pitch, an augmented reality "virtual stadium" was employed by host broadcaster Mediapro, rendering CGI grandstands with virtual sponsor placements. An AI-based automated camera system was used for 19 matches, using similar technology to what was used for the CEBL Summer Series.[26]

See also

References

  1. "Canadian Premier League Statement: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Protocol for Pre-Season Training". Canadian Premier League. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  2. "Canadian Premier League Commissioner Statement: Start of season postponed". Canadian Premier League. March 20, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  3. "Canadian Premier League's Island Games: Everything you need to know". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  4. "CPL players, coaches, staff in P.E.I. bubble all test negative for COVID-19". CBC News. August 11, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  5. "P.E.I. to host Canadian pro soccer league season starting Aug. 13". CBC News. July 29, 2020.
  6. Canadian Premier League [@CPLsoccer] (August 29, 2020). "With approval from the Province of PEI and in partnership with @peisoccerassoc, the CPL hosted the 1st fan zone for minor soccer players. Starting today, groups of up to 50 people will begin to share in the excitement of The Island Games while following public health measures. t.co/lA8xPxRPpK" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 29, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
  7. "Canadian Premier League awards 1st Expansion Team to Ottawa". Canadian Premier League. January 29, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  8. "Ottawa's Soccer Team Was Just Cancelled But Fans Want Them To Switch Leagues". www.narcity.com. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  9. Jacques, John (January 15, 2020). "Rumour: Ottawa On Fast-Track To CPL Expansion". Northern Tribune. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  10. "Canadian Premier League announces 2020 home dates; Ottawa's home opener set for May 16". Global News. February 20, 2020. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  11. Bedakian, Armen (February 21, 2020). "CPL announces balanced schedule, new league and playoff format for 2020". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  12. Thompson, Marty [@martythompson_] (August 12, 2020). "Confirmed: #CanPL tiebreakers for The Island Games... 1. Head-to-head 2. Goal diff. 3. Goals for 4. Total # of wins 5. *Most U-21 minutes* in round 6. Coin toss or drawing of lots" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  13. Thompson, Marty [@martythompson_] (August 12, 2020). "Confirmed: #CanPL tiebreakers for The Island Games... 1. Head-to-head 2. Goal diff. 3. Goals for 4. Total # of wins 5. *Most U-21 minutes* in round 6. Coin toss or drawing of lots" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. "2020 CPL statistics". Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  15. "TRACKER: All 14 picks from the 2019 CPL-U SPORTS Draft". Canadian Premier League. November 11, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  16. "CPL 2020 roster tracker: How all eight teams are shaping up". Canadian Premier League. March 11, 2020. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  17. Molinaro, John (September 18, 2020). "Bustos, Bekker and Garcia finalists for CPL Player of the Year award". Canadian Premier League. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  18. Jaques, John (November 26, 2020). "2020 Canadian Premier League Awards Roundup". Northern Tribune. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
  19. "Gatorade Team of the Week: Forge, Cavalry dominate Week 1". Canadian Premier League. August 17, 2020. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  20. "Gatorade Team of the Week: Bekker and Acuña return in Week 2". Canadian Premier League. August 25, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  21. "Gatorade Team of the Week: Pacific FC dominates CPL's top selections". Canadian Premier League. September 1, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  22. "Gatorade Team of the Week: HFX Wanderers take over CPL best XI". Canadian Premier League. September 8, 2020. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  23. "Gatorade Team of the Week: Wanderers, Forge dominate Week 5". Canadian Premier League. September 15, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
  24. Canadian Premier League [@CPLsoccer] (September 22, 2020). "Presenting...our final @GatoradeCanada Team of the Week for the 2020 CPL Season. 👏 #CanPL t.co/BY7JMiiBwn" (Tweet). Archived from the original on October 6, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
  25. "CPL/Island Games Sunday matches to be broadcast on CHCH TV". Canadian Premier League. August 13, 2020. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  26. Kerschbaumer, Ken (August 19, 2020). "Canadian Premier League Returns: Mediapro Canada Odyssey 4K Truck Onsite; WT Vision Builds Virtual Stadium". Sports Video Group. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
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