Canada Soccer has confirmed the groups for both the men’s and women’s amateur divisions to this year’s National Championships in Ottawa, Ontario. Now a five-day competition with nine teams in each adult division, the new format will feature a playoff series between the three group winners on the road to the men’s Challenge Trophy and women’s Jubilee Trophy on Thanksgiving Monday 12 October 2026.
Each division will feature three groups of three teams with group matches played from 8-10 October. Teams that win their group in October will win a National Championships medal: the best group winner (via tie-breaking criteria) will advance to the Monday Canadian Final while the second- and third-best group winners will face each other in a Sunday playoff match for the right to play on Thanksgiving Monday.
On Tuesday 12 May, the official draw confirmed the groups and group matches for the first three days of the competition. Based on last year’s final ranking in each division of the National Championships, the top-four provinces will be pre-seeded across three groups (A1, B1, C1 and C2). All other provinces were drawn into their groups for positions B2, A2, A3, B3 and C3. In the men’s division, last year’s top-four provinces were Newfoundland & Labrador (A1), Ontario (B1), Québec (C1) and Manitoba (C2). In the women’s division, last year’s top-four provinces were Newfoundland & Labrador (A1), Québec (B1), British Columbia (C1) and Ontario (C2).
As hosts, Ottawa Gloucester SC will have a spot in both the men’s and women’s divisions (the Ontario Cup provincial competition will determine if they are “ON” or “ON-2”).
Canada Soccer’s National Championships are hosted each October across multiple divisions and venues, with the 2026 U-17 Cup hosted in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador and the U-15 Cup hosted in Surrey, British Columbia. The format and groups for both Youth National Championships were previously confirmed in April.
As Canada’s most accessible sport, soccer welcomes more than 750,000 registered players across the nation. This past year alone, 580 youth teams took part in qualifying for the National Championships in the U-17 and U-15 age groups for both boys and girls. As Canada Soccer’s largest national event featuring clubs from coast to coast to coast, the National Championships provide a meaningful week-long soccer experience for host cities and participating teams, as well as the players, coaches, support staff, officials, and volunteers.
Men’s Challenge Trophy competition / compétition masculine pour le Trophée Challenge
Group / Groupe A – NL, NS, BC
Group / Groupe B – ON, AB, NB
Group / Groupe C – QC, MB, ON-2
Women’s Jubilee Trophy competition / compétition féminine pour le Trophée Jubilee
Group / Groupe A – NL, AB-2, NS
Group / Groupe B – QC, AB, ON-2
Group / Groupe C – BC, ON, NL-2
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