The Voyageurs Cup (french: Coupe des Voyageurs) is the domestic
trophy
A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achievement, and serves as a recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics. In many sports medals (or, in ...
for professional
soccer in Canada
In Canada, soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The ob ...
, awarded to the best men's and women's clubs in the country.
The Cup was conceived and commissioned by fans of the
Canada men's national team,
the Voyageurs
The Voyageurs is an unofficial Canadian soccer supporters group founded in 1996, notable for their support of Canada's national teams, awarding of the annual Voyageurs Cup for men's club soccer, and influence in the Canadian soccer media.
H ...
, in 2002. From 2002 to 2007, the cup was awarded annually to the Canadian team finishing with the best record in the
USL First Division
The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States and Canada from 2005 to 2010.
During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system b ...
, from regular-season matches against other Canadian teams in the league. Since 2008, the trophy has been presented to the winner of the
Canadian Championship
The Canadian Championship (french: Championnat canadien) is an annual soccer tournament contested by premier Canadian professional teams. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and Canada's berth in the CONCACAF Champions League. It is contest ...
, which also awards Canada's berth in the
CONCACAF Champions League
The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...
.
Montreal Impact won the first seven trophies while
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...
took the next four. The current men's cup holder is
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on Marc ...
, after winning the
2022 Canadian Championship
The 2022 Canadian Championship was the fifteenth edition of Canada's national soccer cup tournament, awarding the Voyageurs Cup. It took place from May 10 to July 26, 2022. The winners of the tournament, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, were awarded th ...
.
History
The Voyageurs Cup was first conceived in March 2002 by fans of the
Canada men's national team, known as
the Voyageurs
The Voyageurs is an unofficial Canadian soccer supporters group founded in 1996, notable for their support of Canada's national teams, awarding of the annual Voyageurs Cup for men's club soccer, and influence in the Canadian soccer media.
H ...
, following Canada's surprise success at the
2000 Gold Cup. After years of being promised a domestic Canadian cup by the
Canadian Soccer Association
The Canadian Soccer Association (Canada Soccer) is the governing body of soccer in Canada. It is a national organization that oversees the Canadian men's and women's national teams for international play, as well as the respective junior sides ( ...
(CSA), the Voyageurs took it upon themselves to commission a national trophy using member donations. Veteran Voyageurs member and chief fundraiser since the group's founding in 1996, Dwayne Cole, solicited donations on the Voyageurs
internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are often longer than one line of text, and are at least temporar ...
, resulting in $3,500-$4,000 donated. The money was used to commission the trophy,
The group agreed to award the cup to whichever of the four Canadian clubs in the
USL A-League
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...
– the
Montreal Impact,
Vancouver Whitecaps
Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March ...
,
Toronto Lynx
Toronto Lynx was a Canadian soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1997, the team last played in the 2014 season of the Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes ...
and
Calgary Storm
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making ...
– collected the most points against each other during the regular USL season.
Prior to the establishment of the
Canadian Premier League
The Canadian Premier League (CPL or CanPL; french: Première ligue canadienne, links=no) is a professional men's Association football, soccer league in Canada. At the top of the Canadian soccer league system, it is the country's primary nationa ...
, the cup had been contested by the
Montreal Impact,
Toronto Lynx
Toronto Lynx was a Canadian soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1997, the team last played in the 2014 season of the Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes ...
, the
USL
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
and
MLS
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
incarnations of the Vancouver Whitecaps,
Calgary Storm
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making ...
(later renamed
Calgary Mustangs),
Edmonton Aviators
The Edmonton Aviators were a soccer club based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The club was founded in 2003 as a member of the United Soccer League's A-League and folded after playing only one season in 2004. Midway through the season, with the club ...
,
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...
,
FC Edmonton
FC Edmonton was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club was founded in 2010 and competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 2011 to 2017. The club went on hiatus when NASL ceased competitive operat ...
and
Ottawa Fury FC
Ottawa Fury Football Club was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Ottawa, Ontario. The club competed in the North American Soccer League and USL Championship and played its home games at TD Place Stadium.
The Ottawa Fury FC were diss ...
, along with the
League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario (L1O) is a semi-professional men's soccer league in Ontario, Canada. The league began play in 2014 and is sanctioned by the Canadian Soccer Association and the Ontario Soccer Association as a pro-am league in the Canadian so ...
and
Première Ligue de soccer du Québec
The Première ligue de soccer du Québec (PLSQ) is a semi-professional soccer league created in 2012. The Quebec Soccer Federation operates both men's and women's divisions at the pro-am tier of the Canadian soccer league system. The league is pa ...
champions.
When the CPL launched, its teams were added into the draw, to expand the clubs to include
Pacific FC
Pacific Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Greater Victoria, British Columbia. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League, playing home matches at Starlight Stadium located in Langford.
History
On May 5, 201 ...
,
Cavalry FC
Cavalry Football Club, is a Canadian professional soccer club based in the Calgary metropolitan region of Alberta. The club competes at the top of the Canadian soccer league system in the Canadian Premier League, and plays their home matches at ...
,
Valour FC
Valour Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League and plays its home matches at IG Field.
The team is coached by Phillip Dos Santos and community owned thro ...
,
York9 FC
York United Football Club (formerly known as York9 FC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League and plays its home games at York University's York Lions Stadium.
History ...
,
Forge FC
Forge FC is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Hamilton, Ontario, that competes in the Canadian Premier League, the top tier of Canadian soccer. The club plays its home matches at Tim Hortons Field. Forge FC joined the CPL in 2019 as ...
and
HFX Wanderers
HFX Wanderers Football Club, commonly known as HFX Wanderers, and spoken as Halifax Wanderers, is a Canadian professional soccer club in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League at the top of the Canadian soccer le ...
.
The
Montreal Impact won the first seven titles, the first six by virtue of their regular-season record in the
USL
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
against other Canadian sides. They won the inaugural
2008 Canadian Championship
The 2008 Canadian Championship (officially the Nutrilite Canadian Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the first edition of the Canadian Championship – Canada's domestic cup competition. The soccer tournament took place in the cities of Mon ...
to retain the trophy, their seventh straight Voyageurs Cup victory.
Toronto FC
Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...
won the
2009 Canadian Championship
The 2009 Canadian Championship (officially the Nutrilite Canadian Championship for sponsorship reasons) was a soccer tournament hosted and organized by the Canadian Soccer Association that took place in the cities of Montreal, Toronto and Vancouve ...
to win the Voyageurs Cup for the first time. The
Calgary Storm
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making ...
never finished higher than fourth in the competition while the
Edmonton Aviators
The Edmonton Aviators were a soccer club based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The club was founded in 2003 as a member of the United Soccer League's A-League and folded after playing only one season in 2004. Midway through the season, with the club ...
finished third in their lone appearance in the tournament. Both
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
teams folded after the 2004 season. The
Toronto Lynx
Toronto Lynx was a Canadian soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1997, the team last played in the 2014 season of the Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes ...
finished as runners-up in four of the five years they participated, eventually dropping down to the
Premier Development League
USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental association football, soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United Stat ...
in 2007 and effectively withdrawing from the competition. As a result, in 2007 the trophy was decided on regular-season
USL
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
results between the
Montreal Impact and the
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on Marc ...
.
The cup is awarded by ''
the Voyageurs
The Voyageurs is an unofficial Canadian soccer supporters group founded in 1996, notable for their support of Canada's national teams, awarding of the annual Voyageurs Cup for men's club soccer, and influence in the Canadian soccer media.
H ...
'', who were founded in 1996 as a national organization of fans of
Canada men's national soccer team
The Canada men's national soccer team (french: Équipe du Canada de soccer masculin) represents Canada in international soccer competitions since 1924. They are overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association, the governing body for soccer in Cana ...
at all age levels. Until 2008, costs associated with the cup, such as engraving, shipping, maintenance, and promotion had been paid for by private donations from individual members of ''
the Voyageurs
The Voyageurs is an unofficial Canadian soccer supporters group founded in 1996, notable for their support of Canada's national teams, awarding of the annual Voyageurs Cup for men's club soccer, and influence in the Canadian soccer media.
H ...
''. In 2008, the trophy was handed over to the
Canadian Soccer Association
The Canadian Soccer Association (Canada Soccer) is the governing body of soccer in Canada. It is a national organization that oversees the Canadian men's and women's national teams for international play, as well as the respective junior sides ( ...
to be presented to the winners of the
Canadian Championship
The Canadian Championship (french: Championnat canadien) is an annual soccer tournament contested by premier Canadian professional teams. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and Canada's berth in the CONCACAF Champions League. It is contest ...
. The terms of the agreement were to be reviewed in 2010.
There is also a Voyageurs Cup West for Women and Voyageurs Cup East for Women awarded since 2004. The first Women's Voyageurs Super Cup was contested in 2006.
Titles by club
* * denotes team is no longer in operation.
* Bolded teams currently contest the Voyageurs Cup in the annual
2022 Canadian Championship
The 2022 Canadian Championship was the fifteenth edition of Canada's national soccer cup tournament, awarding the Voyageurs Cup. It took place from May 10 to July 26, 2022. The winners of the tournament, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, were awarded th ...
.
* Statistics for
CF Montréal
CF Montréal is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Montréal, Québec, Canada. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1992 as the Montreal Impact (french: Impact de Montréal, links=no), ...
include the original
Montreal Impact of the USL and NASL, who contested the trophy from 2002 to 2011, before being replaced by a new MLS franchise of the same name and ownership.
* Statistics for
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on Marc ...
include the original
Vancouver Whitecaps
Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March ...
of the USL, who contested the trophy from 2002 to 2010, before being replaced by a new MLS franchise of the same name and ownership.
Past winners
Men's title
2002–2007: USL era
Prior to 2008, the men's title was decided on regular-season matches between Canada's
USL A-League
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...
/
USL First Division
The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States and Canada from 2005 to 2010.
During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system b ...
sides.
2008–2010: Canadian Championship, round robin format
The inaugural
Canadian Championship
The Canadian Championship (french: Championnat canadien) is an annual soccer tournament contested by premier Canadian professional teams. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and Canada's berth in the CONCACAF Champions League. It is contest ...
was held in 2008, with the three Canadian teams spread across MLS (Toronto FC) and the USL First Division (Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps) each playing four non-League games in a round robin format.
2011–2020: Canadian Championship, knockout format
Beginning with the 2011 tournament, the format was different from previous editions. In 2011, with four teams involved, the tournament was changed to be a home-and-away semi-final round and a similar final round between the winners. Toronto, as reigning champions, were assigned the top seed and were matched with Edmonton, which was assigned the fourth seed as newcomers to the tournament. The two remaining teams, Montreal and Vancouver, faced off in the other semi-final.
Due to pandemic-related travel restriction and scheduling conflicts, the
Canadian Soccer Association
The Canadian Soccer Association (Canada Soccer) is the governing body of soccer in Canada. It is a national organization that oversees the Canadian men's and women's national teams for international play, as well as the respective junior sides ( ...
(CSA) announced that the 2020 tournament would consist solely of a single match final to be held between the winner of the head-to-head series between the three Canadian teams from Major League Soccer and the champion of the Canadian Premier League. On March 11, 2021, the Cup final between Toronto FC and Forge FC was postponed, initially indefinitely, but was finally scheduled for June 4, 2022.
2021: Canadian Championship, knockout format
The competition follows a similar format to the originally proposed 2020 edition with four rounds and regional pairings in the first two rounds. For the first time in the Canadian Championship, each tie will be played as a single-leg fixture.
Top goalscorers
Bolded players are still active players with a Canadian team.
Women's Voyageurs Cup
See also
*
James River Cup
Richmond Kickers is an American professional soccer club based in Richmond, Virginia. The Kickers compete as a member of USL League One (USL-1). The club was established in 1993, and began play that same year as a United States Interregional Soc ...
*
Southern Derby
The Southern Derby is a fan-based U.S. professional soccer cup competition between USL Championship (USLC) teams based in the South-Atlantic region of the United States (North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.). It was founded in 2000. The ...
*
Canadian Classique
The Canadian Classique, also known as the 401 Derby and the Two Solitudes Derby, is a soccer rivalry between Canadian clubs, Toronto FC and CF Montréal (formerly the Montreal Impact). The rivalry gets the "401" nickname from Ontario Highway 4 ...
*
Cascadia Cup
The Cascadia Cup is the name of the trophy created in 2004 by supporters of the Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders, and Vancouver Whitecaps, which is awarded each season to the best soccer team in the Pacific Northwest. The cup is named for the ...
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Soccer cup competitions in Canada
CF Montréal
Toronto FC
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Recurring sporting events established in 2002
2002 establishments in Canada
Soccer rivalries in Canada