Top Ontario soccer league well-represented at FIFA World Cup
Canada may be out of contention for the FIFA World Cup, but the team’s appearance at the tournament is already having an impact on soccer players here at home.
Several former athletes from League1 Ontario, the province's top semi-professional soccer league, were sporting the red and white in Qatar.
“You have eight graduates from League1 who are now representing the Canadian national team," says Amardo Oakley, who plays as a right back with Guelph United.
He adds that seeing those athletes compete at the highest level is important.
“It’s really going to inspire the next generation, inspire players like myself, and other players in that league to continue going and pushing to get to that next level.”
League1 only formed in 2014 and Guelph United's general manager Keith Mason says it was the missing puzzle piece to developing athletes in not only the province, but also the entire country.
"There's a pathway to the top and I think some of the things about League1 that I'm proud of is exactly that -- the missing link between amateur and professional," says Mason.
He points to players on the national team who now play for some of the biggest clubs in the world. Having a program like League1 allows players to develop in their own country. For Oakley, that wasn't an option. He first went to Portugal.
"At the time, there weren't a lot of opportunities to stay here and say: 'You know, it's worth it.' It was more worth it to go overseas and get experience," says Oakley.
While the ball is rolling on Canadian player development, there is still work to be done.
"I think we maybe need to find a system that is not just half the year, something that is more full-time and something that's more intriguing for guys who want to be professional football players," Oakley says. "Because working and playing football is not easy."
Still, there is confidence that Canada is heading in the right direction.
"From the cradle to the grave, people have dreams and when they see other players leading the path before them and setting the footprints in the sand, then they know 'this is a path that can lead me to my goal,'" says Mason. "And who knows, maybe World Cup 2026."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.