The post-World Cup break hardly lasted long as it felt like club soccer resumed in full force this week, both in Canada and abroad.

There were plenty of transfer rumours involving Canadian players, while others were balling out across North America’s top leagues.

Plus, at long last CPL expansion news?!, the U-20s pick up a big win, a homecoming for CanMNT and plenty more in this week’s edition of The Northern Pitch.

Canada’s next generation look like they mean business in Mexico.

The Jesse Marsch-coached young reds opened the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Championship with a 3-0 victory over Panama in Group C action.

Vancouver FC’s Emrick Fotsing, who captained the side, scored a brace, while Vancouver Whitecaps’ Liam Mackenzie added the other from the penalty spot. Panama were down to ten men for most of the match.

The result, and the goals, already put the team in a very good position. Next up, they take on Honduras on Wednesday, July 29, where a win would lock up their spot in the next round before their final group game against Jamaica on August 1.

It’s a good start to what is a very important tournament for the program, who look to qualify for the U-20 World Cup for the first time since 2007, and the Olympics for the first time since 1984.

After inspiring a nation this summer, the Canadian men’s national team will be back on home soil this fall for a pair of international friendlies.

Canada Soccer announced this week that CanMNT will battle South American opponents Chile at BMO Field on Saturday, September 26, before a meeting with Peru at Stade Saputo in Montréal on Saturday, October 3.

The two nations are ranked 49 and 50 in the world, respectively. While neither qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, both should be good tests for Canada, have last met in the group stage of the 2025 Copa América. Canada defeated Peru 1-0, and drew Chile 0-0.

Canada’s action this fall will also include Concacaf Nations League Quarter-final action, which will be a home-and-away series in the November window to qualify for the Concacaf Nations League finals in LA in March 2027.

The federation confirmed they are also in talks for potential additional friendlies during the fall.

Some bad news out of Chicago this week, as 25-year-old Canadian striker Jordyn Huitema has suffered an ACL injury, and will be out for the remainder of the NWSL season.

It also rules her out for the Concacaf W Championship, where Canada will look to qualify for both the 2027 World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games.

Huitema was having a solid season in Chicago with four goals in 12 matches. She also scored for Canada against Costa Rica back in June, in the country’s most recent international match. It was her 24th goal for Canada, which is the eighth most all-time, and third among active players.

As a result, she will be a big miss for Canada and Stoney during the tournament, but will hopefully be back stronger than ever for next summer’s World Cup in Brazil.

The CPL has joined the expansion conversation, and we’re all here for it.

On this week’s episode of Footy Prime, CPL commissioner James Johnson dropped a surprise, telling listeners that after the NSL set their sights on Winnipeg for 2027 last week, the CPL too will be targeting expansion teams for 2027 and 2028.

With the league still yet to grow past eight teams—with Vancouver FC and FC Supra replacing FC Edmonton and Valour FC—news of new clubs in the two seasons would be a massive step in the right direction.

Kelowna and Québec City have long been suggested as prime locations, and now, with the weight of World Cup legacy behind them, they might finally stick. Other ideas could be returns to Edmonton and Winnipeg, especially now that the latter will see NSL Winnipeg make a right-sized Ralph Cantafio Soccer Complex home—rather than a cavernous Princess Auto Stadium.

😎 Players back for preseason. CanMNT players who were afforded a well-deserved rest following the World Cup began rejoining their teams this week. Those included Stephen Eustáquio, Promise David, and Luc De Fougerolles, but not Southampton striker Cyle Larin nor Norwich’s Ali Ahmed.

🇫🇷 Aleks Guboglo loaned to Stade Reims. It’s yet another move abroad for one of CF Montréal’s brightest stars. Defender Aleks Guboglo, eligible for both Canada and Haiti, is the lucky one, sealing a loan move to Ligue 2’s Stade Reims. Reims also have a purchase option on Guboglo which we hope gets activated.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Owen Goodman signs for Dundee FC. A busy post-World Cup transfer window is kicking off. Crystal Palace has dealt Goodman out on loan for the season to Scotland’s Dundee FC.

🇬🇷 Stephen Eustaquio to Greece? Porto and Staqs agreed to leave transfer talks until after the World Cup. Well, we’re at that point now. The mustachioed man has caught the eyes of Olympiacos as well as MLS clubs after a successful time with LAFC. But, he could also stay with Porto if a move doesn’t materialize.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Alistair Johnston to Everton or Fulham? At this point, it’s a little difficult not to think Alistair Johnston and Celtic in the same breath. But the right-back could be on the move after reported interest from Premier League sides Everton and Fulham.

🇩🇪 Promise David on the move? Say it ain’t so if you’re an USG supporter. Bundesliga club Stuttgart could be close to signing one of the biggest names in Canadian soccer, especially after Tobi himself teased the move on IG.

🌹 Jessie Fleming scores for Portland. It wasn’t the prettiest, but they’ll count all the same. Fleming gave the Thorns the lead in an eventual 2-2 draw against Gotham.

👑 Cloé Lacasse, deadly from the spot. It was a night to remember for Lacasse, and not one for Kailen Sheridan and Carly Wickenheiser. Lacasse had the final goal as Utah scored four set-piece goals on the Courage.

🇨🇿 Bryan Ouanda scores in the season opener. Slavia Prague opened the Czech league season with a 4-1 win and did so with the help of Ouanda against his former club, Slovácko.

🇩🇰 Simon Colyn chips in against Copenhagen. The limbs were out for the former Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder as he scored to make it 2-1 for Lyngby against the Danish giants FCK. A shame the match ended 3-2 for them.

🇸🇪 Matteo De Brienne scores in UECL Qualifying. From scoring on Sunday nights with Ottawa South United, to scoring on Thursday nights in Europe. GAIS eked out a 1-0 lead, courtesy of a laser from MDB in the first leg of their two-legged tie against Nordsjælland. The second leg takes place on July 30, away in Denmark.

🟥 Nathan Saliba shown red. Why can’t we have nice things? Saliba was shown his second yellow in Anderlecht’s Europa League qualifier loss on the road against Hammarby after stepping into a breakaway.

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This was a busy week for MLS, all Canadian clubs played two games this week, as there were midweek and weekend matchups. Also, there has been some important transfer news.

🌊 A seven-goal thriller in Cincinnati. For neutrals, and for the Cincinnati home crowd, this was a very entertaining match. Both teams went goal for goal, with two goals for each team mounting separate comebacks. Alas, it was Cincinnati that took home the 4-3 dub. Vancouver may be disappointed, but this team is reminding everyone that they still have serious firepower. Shoutout to Jeevan Badwal, as he picked up a goal and an assist this game.

🌊 The Whitecaps held to a draw. Vancouver travelled back to the Midwest and played against Minnesota United. Instead of a blockbuster seven-goal game, they were held to a 0-0 draw.

🔴 Toronto FC held to a second draw in a row. TFC travelled to Foxborough to play against the New England Revolution. Not too long ago, Boston, we mean, Gillette Stadium hosted France vs. Morocco in a World Cup semi-final. Now the venue is back hosting MLS games, and this time it was a 0-0 draw. Both teams’ defensive structure was sound, but their forwards could not find the net.

🔴 Corbeanu finally finds the net! Toronto FC travelled to DC United in hopes of reversing a winless streak away from home. Unfortunately, that would not be the case this time as TFC were handed a 2-1 defeat at DC. On the bright side, Theo Corbeanu found the back of the net!

🔵 A questionable penalty leads to a CFM defeat. CF MTL travelled to Nashville and were handed a 1-0 defeat. Nashville had two Quebecois talents on the bench, Woobens Pacius and Charles-Emile Brunet. The latter came off the bench in the 90th minute. MTL conceded a penalty in the 67th minute, which Sam Surridge converted on the spot. Was it a pen? It’s arguable.

🔵 Luis Suarez secured the dub with a panenka in Montréal. MTL hosted Inter Miami, the 2025 MLS champs were without Lionel Messi and Rodrigo de Paul but new signing Casemiro made his debut at Stade Saputo. CFM had opportunities to score but were missing the finishing product in the box. Miami scored the only goal of the game after a penalty was awarded after a devastating foul on German Berterame. The Miami forward was carried into an ambulance on the pitch.

☀️ Mathieu Choinière with a week of assists. It’s been a good return to MLS for the CanMNT midfielder. On Wednesday, he assisted Denis Bouanga’s goal. An assist that can be described as Pirlo-esque, a pass that came deep from LAFC’s half. This past weekend, Mathieu assisted Bouanga, once again pinging a ball deep within their own half.

🦁 Maxime Crépeau earned two clean sheets. Orlando City travelled away to San Jose mid-week and walked away with a 4-0 win. Also, there’s a dude named Antoine Griezmann who made his debut and scored. Last Saturday, Orlando City hosted conference leaders Nashville and defeated them 1-0. The CanMNT #1 has two clean sheets this week.

🧑‍🚒 Joel Waterman scores for Chicago. The Chicago Fire travelled to the Bronx to play against NYCFC. The Fire were defeated 3-1, with Joel Waterman scoring the only goal for Chicago. A clinical finish off a set piece at the far post.

🤝 CF Montréal is doing business in the market again. With Aleksandr Guboglo departing on loan, CFMTL were once again active in securing defender Brayan Ceballos from the New England Revolution. MTL added the 26-year-old Colombian defender in exchange for $850K in GAM. CFM then also traded Icelandic defender Dagur Dan Thorhallsson to San Diego FC for $650k in GAM. Never a dull transfer moment for Montréal.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Sebastian Behalter is leaving Vancouver. It has been a good couple of years for Vancouver’s American midfielder. After having impressive performances with the USMNT during the World Cup, Berhalter has garnered attention from English club Middlesbrough. It is reported that Boro will pay up to $2 million for the midfielder.

🇩🇪 Toronto FC signed Niklas Dorsch. TFC have agreed to acquire the German midfielder from FC Heidenheim for $4.3 million. News broke earlier this week, as both Fabrizio Romano and Tom Bogert reported on the transfer. Dorsch may join Toronto as a designated player.

Friday, July 31
New York City FC vs. Toronto FC (7:30PM ET)

Saturday, August 1
CF Montréal vs. New England Revolution (7:30PM ET @ Stade Saputo)
Vancouver Whitecaps vs. LAFC (4:30PM PT @ BC Place)

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⚜️ Loïc Kwemi carries Supra to a victory. We know there are certified ballers in the league, but former CS Saint-Laurent and Valour forward Kwemi carried Supra from 2-0 to 3-2 at full time. Halifax held the lead, but Supra found the way and were fortunate to earn two penalties and a deflected goal, all scored by Loïc Kwemi. Nonetheless, Supra needed this after a rough loss to Vancouver at home.

🦅 Vancouver continues their winning streak. VFC hosted Cavalry and looked to continue their winning form in the league at home. Cavalry’s holding midfielder, Eryk Kobza, was shown a red card in the 42nd minute, and VFC capitalized on the opportunity. The home team found the net with a goal from Lys Mousset. Vancouver are now on a two game winning streak.

🦖 A comeback fight at TD Place. Atletico Ottawa hosted Pacific in a thrilling 3-2 come back for the home club. Pacific FC came out swinging with an effective game plan in new manager Terry Dunfield’s debut, as they went up 2-1 early in the second half. The 2025 Champs did not go down without a fight With pure willpower they came back and with a massive win. Also note Loïc Cloutier’s massive goal line clearance in the 67th minute.

🔨 Forge widen the gap with Cavalry FC. The four-time CPL champs travelled to North York and handed Inter Toronto FC a 3-1 defeat. Forge’s attack was overwhelming for Inter Toronto’s defensive line. They came in waves and registered 28 shots with 9 on target. The attack was relentless, with that type of pressure, any defence would struggle and crack. With this win, Forge are now 7 points clear from second-place Cavalry.

Tuesday, July 28
Cavalry FC vs. FC Supra (7PM MT @ ATCO Field)

Friday, July 31
Pacific FC vs. FC Supra (7PM PT @ Starlight Stadium)

Saturday, August 1
Vancouver FC vs. Atlético Ottawa (3PM PT @ Willoughby Community Park)
Cavalry FC vs. Inter Toronto (7PM MT @ ATCO Field)

Sunday, August 2
Halifax Wanderers vs. Forge FC (7PM AT @ Wanderers Grounds)

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🪽 Ottawa’s win streak continues in Calgary. Since May 29th, the Rapid have been undefeated with 6 wins and 1 draw. Their 2-1 victory over the Calgary Wild marked their 7th win, solidifying their first-place spot in the league.

🥀 Roses are defeated at home by rivals AFC Toronto. Not the most memorable first game with the club for Mimi Alidou. The Montreal Roses hosted AFC at Stade Boréale and were defeated 2-0. Toronto’s goals could only be described as class. A calm finish by Lauren Rowe to open the game. A red card for MTL’s Chloe Minas led to a banger of a free-kick scored by Kaylee Hunter.

🌊 The Tides rise above Vancouver. Dad jokes always necessary. Halifax travelled to Vancouver and flew back to the Maritimes with a 1-0 win. This was a game that seemed destined to have ended in a scoreless draw as both teams were unable to find the back of the net. However, for Tides, a bit of luck with an own goal from Jessica de Filippo from a corner blessed them with three points.

Tuesday, July 28
AFC Toronto vs. Calgary Wild (7PM ET @ York Lions Stadium)

Wednesday, July 29
Vancouver Rise vs. Montréal Roses (7PM PT @ Swangard Stadium)

Saturday, August 1
Calgary Wild vs. AFC Toronto (2PM MT @ McMahon Stadium)

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