Soccer has taken Canada by storm. Can its reign last? https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opi...-cup-basketball-popularity/?intcmp=gift_share
He's going to be part of the coaching team. He's in serious need to learn how to manage tournament football and players. We didn't need Kone against Qatar like we didn't need Davies to beat the US in Nations League
Our pyramid isn't set up in a way where we can make those predictions this early. David, Bombito, Kone etc..., pretty much came out of nowhere. In a few years, it will be easier to accurately name those prospects in advance like we easily can in hockey. CPL need to expand, D3 needs to expand and have their top tier professionalize and better integrate with CPL.
Players in Canada pop out of no where due to happenstance sometimes in spite of the system, not because of it.
I don't think there are any obvious standouts at U20 level, but there's a really good generation of CBs in the 07s and particularly in the 08s. We'll have to see how they develop, but there's 8 or 9 who could be good professionals with the potential to be internationals. Plus a handful of promising 04s and 05s at CB. There's high hopes for Owen Goodman (No. 3 at the World Cup) at Crystal Palace and Grégoire Swiderski at Alaves in goal, but it's so hard to project keepers. There's some young-ish players like Jeevan Badwal (06), Adonija Ouanda (05), and Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty (04) who I think are close/ready for a senior cap. It's some of the really young players that are probably the most promising. I really like Van Parker (09), a dual-nat with Real Salt Lake who was playing up an age group at the last U17 World Cup. Keeper Samsy Keita (09) in Montreal is also well regarded, while Lucas Dawson (11) just turned 15, but is starting for Toronto FC in MLS Next Pro and not looking out of place at all. He's literally a kid, so you have to temper expectations because who knows, but the potential ceiling looks pretty good. And as always we'll see what happens with dual-nats. Rayan Elloumi (07) was in the Tunisia World Cup squad, but AFAIK is not cap-tied and could switch. Irish youth international Grady McDonnell (08) just transferred to Nottingham Forest. They're both born-and-raised in Canada. I don't see any reason why Seyi Fakiyesi (10) wouldn't play for the U.S., but Canada could really use a left back prospect coming through the system. Zach Zalewski (09) at Jagiellonia Bialystok in Poland has plenty of options too. As others noted... often guys come out of nowhere and burst onto the scene quickly and a player like Bombito that no one had heard of in 2022 is a starter in 2026. But that said, Alphonso Davies, Jonathan David and Luc de Fougerolles looked like they had huge potential well before they turned 18.
Players pop out of nowhere for other nations too. Players develop at different rates and in different ways. Not everyone is a youth star......................... There are plenty of players in the USMNT right now that had zero or almost no youth caps. .....................Hell, our captain Tim Ream is one of them. 86 senior caps. No official caps at the youth levels. Youth national teams are a means to an end and not an end unto themselves. Yes, we can see some STARS before the age of 20. The US has a bunch of those prospects right now that have burst thru in MLS. [Prospect being a latin word for "hasn't really done squat yet."] None of them are playing for their U20 team at this event. Gozo of RSL, Peyton Miller of New England, Mehmeti and Hall of RBNY, Sullivan of Philly. The list goes on. So ultimately what does this U20 event actually mean in terms of future senior national team success? If the top European and domestic players aren't there? Not a lot. It's a measure of the depth of the program and how well the coaching staff expanded the net within the pool. But its not some predictor of whether Canada, the US, or Mexico will be the best senior national team 5 years from now. Its worth noting that when MLS changes its calendar to align with Europe, maybe the US/Canada will get more releases for late spring/summer CONCACAF events like this one. Saying all that, yes.............I totally agree with you all that Canada has underachieved at this level. Almost inexplicably so. They're ranked below Cuba and Guatemala at the U20 level in the CONCACAF rankings. Also, by the way, Costa Rica has been terrible at this level of late. Why? Who knows? They're ranked below the Dominican Republic. Mexico has won the U20 Championships 14 times. The USMNT is next with only 3
It is true that youth tournaments aren't perfect predictors of senior success. Plenty of players develop late and every country has examples of internationals who barely featured at youth level. That said, Canada's situation is different because our professional development system is still in its infancy. The CPL is only seven years old. For the first time, we're sending multiple impactful professionals to this U20 tournament and the league's U21 minutes requirement is starting to create a genuine pathway. Sergei Kozlovskiy (18) Atletico Ottawa Zane Bruno (19) Forge FC Emrick Forsing (18) Vancouver FC Scholarship Jimoh (18) Inter Toronto Over time, more of these players will come from the CPL and the League1 system rather than relying almost entirely on academy players who barely have played in a pro league. Players like Alistair Johnston, Ismaël Koné, Moïse Bombito, Cyle Larin, Tajon Buchanan, and Dayne St. Clair all spent time in League1 or similar domestic pathways before reaching the national team. Ontario's and Quebec's League1 competitions are also multi-tier with promotion and relegation, so the infrastructure is still growing with the aim of fully Professionalizing the top tier. I'd actually like to see those leagues give even more meaningful minutes to younger players. We'll probably need another decade to build the kind of coherent development pyramid that produces consistent results. That process is already underway. The provincial League1 competitions are becoming the bridge between youth soccer and the CPL, similar to how the CHL feeds the NHL. The missing piece is a CPL2. That would create another professional tier, giving more young players a place to develop while allowing the CPL to place even greater emphasis on becoming an elite first division. The pyramid is still young, but it's finally starting to take shape.
Zayne Bruno has played 1 minute for Forge in the CPL this year. Is that better for our program than other players who get regular minutes for their MLSNext teams?
Judging a 19-year-old solely on this season's first-team minutes misses the bigger picture. Bruno earned this call-up based on his overall body of work. Last year he already made four CPL appearances, then played 35 matches on loan at Sigma to continue his development. This year he's competing for minutes on the defending CPL champions while still earning Canada U20 call-ups. Canada's coaches clearly value more than just first-team minutes—they've watched him in camps and international matches, where he's consistently performed. He helped Canada qualify by scoring a hat trick in Concacaf qualifying and was even invited into the senior national team's pre-World Cup training camp, clearly they see potential in him. Training every day and fighting for minutes in a championship-winning professional environment like Forge with defensive depth isn't the same as playing academy matches. (TFC found out this year). Coaches evaluate training quality, tactical understanding, physical development, and previous international performances—not just this year's appearance total. And it's a bit inconsistent to question Bruno over limited pro minutes when MLS academy players have been selected for Canada youth teams for years without any professional minutes at all. If the standard is "only current first-team minutes matter," it should apply equally to everyone, no?
Exclusive: Stuttgart make an offer for Promise David 🇨🇦🔴The offer stands at €14mVfB and David have reached an agreement – salary set at €3m netDavid is the alternative to Dzenan Pejcinovic#VfB #UnionSG pic.twitter.com/la4M6NuJRn— Andre Oechsner (@andreoeausm) July 22, 2026
CPL expansion announcements will be made within 2 months. CSME CEO had explained that the new deal with Canada Soccer was set to benefit the growth of the league tremendously. While previous commissioner Noonan had a more conservative approach by being adamant on soccer specific stadium before expanding, James Jonhston is willing to accommodate interested as long as there's plans for soccer specific venues to be built. Most likely candidates Windsor Kelowna Quebec City Winnipeg Commissioner James Johnson teases #CPLsoccer expansion 🗣️"We're in the process and we're preparing for more expansion stories in the next 1-2 months, where we'll be looking to announce expansion teams in 2027 and also 2028, which is enormous."🎙️ H/T @footy_prime pic.twitter.com/5qLZP91OUn— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) July 23, 2026
Alistair Johnston is reportedly on the radar of Premier League club Everton 🏴, who could make an approach for the right-back following his strong World Cup performances.He was also linked with Fulham earlier this summer, with the club reportedly contacting his agent. #CanMNT pic.twitter.com/DDSjDlHSw8— IceFieldFC (@IceFieldFC) July 23, 2026
A big step up for the front runner to become the #CanMNT No. 1 goalkeeper over the next World Cup cycle.Owen Goodman gets a loan move to Dundee in the Scottish top flight after playing in EFL League One last season. https://t.co/TETltEBXZ7— Ben Steiner (@BenSteiner00) July 25, 2026
GOAL: Theo Bair scores again for Auxerre in pre-season!This time against Orleans who play in Ligue 3. #CanMNT pic.twitter.com/DiZP9vMNCE— Evan (@baggedmilkfc) July 25, 2026
21 year-old Canadian striker Federico Rose has joined Slovenian giants NK Olimpija Ljubljana 🇸🇮 on a contract until 2029.Rose earns another step up after spending the latter half of the season with NŠ Mura.One to watch for the future 🇨🇦 #CanMNT pic.twitter.com/dZqZwHMWa9— IceFieldFC (@IceFieldFC) July 25, 2026
More youth players playing pro is a crucial element that had been missing - (c) Emrick Fotsing (Vancouver) scores with an assist from Sergei Kozlovskiy (Atletico Ottawa) GOAL 🇨🇦It's an all-#CPLsoccer opener for the CanMNT U-20s as Sergei Kozlovskiy finds Emrick Fotsing for an opening header vs. Panama 🇵🇦🔴 Watch #CanM20 on OneSoccer pic.twitter.com/vj0ik55287— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) July 26, 2026
Does the fact that the CMNT staff took over coaching this team for the tournament have an effect in contrast to the usual national team lifers?
Most likely, yes. I have my issues with Marsch but this is an upgrade to the usual coaching staff. Game is now over, 3-0 win Things you love to see: #CPLSoccer stars shining on the international stage 😎Two goals for Vancouver FC's Emrick Fotsing in the CanMNT 🇨🇦 U-20's 3-0 win over Panama 🇵🇦 pic.twitter.com/GspJSGusmx— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) July 26, 2026