Game will be played between April 29 and May 7
It will be roughly the Canadian equivalent of Liverpool against Everton as the cross-strait derby between CPL soccer rivals Vancouver FC and Island-based Pacific FC opens the Canadian Championship. The tournament, for the Voyageurs Cup, is this country’s equivalent of the FA Cup in England.
In the organic nature of soccer, teams from various levels are eligible for national Cup competitions. The Canadian version features the three teams in MLS — Vancouver Whitecaps, Toronto FC and CF Montreal — the eight CPL teams and the champions of League1 B.C., League1 Alberta, League1 Ontario and League1 Quebec. The Canadian Championship winner hoists the Voyageurs Cup and earns a berth in the following year’s CONCACAF Champions League Cup, this region’s version of the UEFA Champions League.
The draw was made Thursday by Canada Soccer. PFC will host VFC at Starlight Stadium in the single-game opening round scheduled for between April 29 and May 7. The defending-champion Vancouver Whitecaps of MLS will receive an opening-round bye. The seven victorious clubs from the opening round will advance to the quarter-finals, which will be staged in a two-legged home-and-away format, as will the semifinals. The single-game 2025 Canadian Championship final will be held on Oct. 1.
Other opening-round match-ups feature the CPL’s Cavalry FC of Calgary against Alberta League1 champion Edmonton Scottish United, CPL’s Valour FC of Winnipeg against the League1 B.C. champion TSS Rovers of Burnaby, the CPL’s Atletico Ottawa against League1 Ontario-champion Scrosoppi FC of Milton, Ont.
The Whitecaps beat PFC 1-0 at Starlight Stadium and B.C. Place this year to win their two-game 2024 Canadian Championship semifinal set 2-0 before the ’Caps went on to beat fellow MLS club Toronto FC on penalty kicks in the Voyageurs Cup final.
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