One of the great strengths of the Canadian Soccer League is its accommodation of teams that represent their country of origin or ethnic community, while adding new teams that represent local geography.
Soccer in Canada is today very much a Canadian game following the dramatic change in the 90s which moved the game into a position of being the most-played team sport in the country, with player demographics revealing there were more soccer players than in hockey and more than baseball, football and basketball registrations combined.
The addition in recent years of Niagara, Waterloo. Burlington Brantford and Milton to the CSL reflects an increasing interest in soccer in the Niagara Peninsular and Southwestern Ontario, while 2015 expansion teams Scarborough and Toronto Atomic have been added as community teams in Toronto.
London City entered the CSL in 1973, Brampton in 2001 and York Region in 2002.
Toronto Croatia has been a member of the CSL or its forerunner leagues for 60 years, since 1956, to retain its ethnic identity and become one of the strongest professional soccer teams in Canada. Toronto Croatia is the current world club champion of Croatian teams that play in the Croatian World Cup tournament every four years. Serbian White Eagles also go back to the forerunner leagues, having been a prominent team in the 50s.
All of these teams can be seen at one location, the St. Joan of Arc ground at Maple, just north of Toronto this weekend. It’s a single location festival of soccer to kick off what promises to be a busy CSL campaign through to the end of October. The weekend has a complete slate of regular season league games not previously arranged at one location since the original forerunner league of the CSL launched in Canada back in 1926.
It’s an opportunity to see great soccer surrounded by some of the top coaches and technical staff in Canadian soccer, some of whom have experienced soccer a high levels, yes, including the World Cup.
There will be prizes, hourly draws both days for a season VIP pass to all CSL games, and a rose for the ladies on both days.
It’s kickoff time in the Canadian Soccer League. It’s two days – in one location.
Admission: $10 (Children 12 and under: $5)
CSL Soccer Fest ’15 St. Joan of Arc ground, Maple, Ontario
Saturday, May 9
10 am Serbian White Eagles B vs Burlington SC B Second Division
12 pm Toronto Atomic FC vs Niagara United First Division
2 pm Toronto Atomic FC B vs Niagara United B Second Division
4 pm London City vs SC Scarborough First Division
6 pm York Region Shooters B vs Toronto Croatia B Second Division
8 pm Milton SC vs Brampton City Utd First Division
Sunday, May 10
11 am SC Waterloo B vs Brantford Galaxy B Second Division
1 pm Serbian White Eagles vs Burlington SC First Division
3 pm Milton SC B vs Brampton City Utd B Second Division
5 pm Brantford Galaxy vs SC Waterloo First Division
7 pm York Region Shooters vs Toronto Croatia First Division