Canada Soccer Community Update: Shaping our Next Chapter

Canadian soccer is entering an exciting period of opportunity, reflection, and shared decision-making. The growth of our game across Canada, the continued progress of our National Teams, the expansion of the professional landscape, and the growing attention surrounding soccer in our country have created new possibilities for the years ahead.

It is also a time for us to consider together where Canada Soccer can best focus its leadership, resources, and ambition, and how the broader soccer community can help build a stronger, more connected system for the future.

The question before us is both important and inspiring: What should the next chapter of soccer in Canada look like?

Canada Soccer is beginning a comprehensive strategic planning process to establish our priorities and direction for the years ahead. Central to this work will be listening to people across the Canadian soccer community and beyond, learning from diverse experiences and perspectives, and exploring how we can build on today’s momentum to make our sport stronger for generations to come.

Listening to Our Community

The first phase of consultation will take place from October through December 2026. We will begin with facilitated sessions with Canada Soccer’s Members and will also seek perspectives from a broad range of people connected to the game, including players, National Team alumni, coaches, referees, clubs, professional soccer, governments, partners, donors, leaders in high-performance sport and international soccer, and others whose experience can enrich the conversation about our shared future. Before important strategic choices are made, we will listen openly, ask thoughtful questions, and learn from one another.

Canada Soccer management will be responsible for developing the strategic plan, guided closely by what we hear throughout the consultation process. The Board of Directors will provide input and direction and will ultimately be responsible for approving the final strategic plan.

Starting the Conversation

To support these thoughtful and informed discussions, we are sharing strategic planning pre-reading materials with our community. These materials can be found on our website.

These materials offer context on some of the important questions facing soccer in Canada and present initial perspectives to help spark conversation. They explore participation, high-performance development, the overall structure of our soccer system, the resources required to pursue our ambitions, and the broader role soccer can play in Canadian society.

These materials are a starting point, not a finished strategy. We encourage everyone participating in formal consultation sessions to review the materials in advance and come to those sessions ready to share experiences, test assumptions, identify opportunities, and discuss the ideas, priorities, and choices that matter most. ​

Participation in this process is not limited to those invited to a formal consultation session. Everyone in the Canadian soccer community, or any Canadian who cares about the future of our game, is invited to review the materials and share comments, ideas, and feedback at StrategicPlan@canadasoccer.com by the end of December.

What Happens Next

Following the consultation period, we will bring together the feedback received, identify common themes and important differences, and use those insights to develop a draft strategic plan in early 2027.

The draft will be shared for a further round of feedback before it is finalized and presented to the Canada Soccer Board of Directors for formal approval. We expect the new strategy to be published in 2027, with formal implementation beginning on January 1, 2028.

We know there will be different views about the future of Canadian soccer and we welcome them. A strong strategy does not require agreement on every issue. It requires us to listen with respect, understand the opportunities and challenges facing our game, and then make clear, well-informed choices about where Canada Soccer can contribute the greatest value.

Building the Future Together

Canadian soccer has significant momentum. Participation is strong. Our National Teams are competing on the world stage. Professional soccer continues to grow. More Canadians are following, playing, coaching, officiating, volunteering, and supporting the game than ever before.

Our shared opportunity is to turn that momentum into lasting progress. We invite you to take part, challenge our thinking, share your ideas and experiences, and help shape a vision for what Canadian soccer can become in the years ahead.

The next chapter of our game will be shaped by the choices we make and the voices we include today. Together, we can build a stronger, more connected, and more ambitious future for soccer in Canada.

Sincerely,

Peter Augruso

President & Board Chair

Kevin Blue

CEO & General Secretary