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It’s been quite a year, huh?  Rarely do we look back on the previous 12 months in Canadian soccer with complete satisfaction. There is always something that grates or casts a shadow over any progress that has been made. However, with the men’s national team saying farewell to the year with an impressive 3-0 win against Suriname at BMO Field in Toronto in the Nation’s League quarterfinals on Tuesday and the women wrapping up their season in a couple of weeks with two friendlies in Spain, something does feel a little different this time. Yes, the spectre of doom is always sitting next door and waiting to pay us a visit but given what we experienced over the last calendar year, it feels as if there is nothing the sport can’t handle. I’d even go as far to say that I have never felt more hopeful. Let’s be honest, though: the year didn’t start off well. Alyson Walker, who had been hired as Canada Soccer’s new CEO and general secretary and tasked with fixing all that is broken in the ...

Canada’s next opponent as they look to advance in the Concacaf Nations League is a familiar one. The Northern nation is set to take on Mexico in the semifinals of the annual tournament as it hopes to advance to a final for the second time in three years, Concacaf announced Thursday. The showdown between the two sides is scheduled for Thursday, Mar. 20, 2025, at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Canada has taken on Mexico four times since 2021, winning once, losing once and drawing twice. Their most recent result was a scoreless draw in a friendly game on Sept. 10 earlier this year. Les Rouges advanced to the Nations League Semifinals after beating Suriname 3-0 on Tuesday night (4-0 on aggregate). El Tri , meanwhile, downed Honduras 4-0 (4-2 on aggregate) on Tuesday to secure their spot. On the other side of the bracket, the United States will face Panama. The finals will be played days after the semis on Mar. 23 at SoFi Stadium. Since the tournament’s inception in 2019, t...

FRISCO, Texas — FC Dallas has hired Eric Quill, who most recently coached New Mexico United in the USL Championship, as the Major League Soccer club’s new head coach, the team announced . Quill takes over for Peter Luccin, who served as Dallas’ interim head coach after Nico Estevez was dismissed in June after a 3-8-5 start. Estevez was named the new head coach of Dallas rival Austin FC in October.  Quill, a former assistant coach for the Columbus Crew, joined New Mexico in 2023 and led the second-tier team to the Western Conference semifinals in the playoffs as well as the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup this season.  “Eric is a championship-caliber coach who has experience leading teams to the top of the table,” FC Dallas chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said in a statement. “He has a deep knowledge of the game built over three decades as a player and coach at the collegiate, professional, and national team levels, and his keen focus on player development makes him an excell...

NYON, Switzerland — UEFA ordered Kosovo on Wednesday to forfeit a Nations League game in Romania after its team refused to play on in second-half stoppage time, with the score 0-0, after hearing pro-Serbia chants. Romania was awarded a 3-0 win by default for the game in Bucharest last Friday, though it was ordered by UEFA to play its first home game in a World Cup qualifying group next year in an empty stadium. That was punishment for “racist” chants by Romanian fans targeting neighbouring Hungary. The default result, and the award of three points to Romania, did not affect the final standings in the teams’ third-tier Nations League group. Even a 3-0 default win for Kosovo, tying both teams on 15 points, would have left Romania top of the standings on a tiebreaker of overall goal difference. UEFA also fined the Romanian soccer federation a total of 128,000 euros ($135,000) for a range of charges relating to “xenophobic anti-Hungarian chants,” “provocative political messages...

TORONTO — After decades of under-achievement, the Canadian men’s team has dared us all to believe that anything is possible when the country co-hosts the 2026 FIFA World Cup.  The smoldering embers of optimism were flamed into a burning inferno with Canada’s historic fourth-place finish at this summer’s Copa América. The Canadians went toe-to-toe with some of South America’s top nations on one of the sport’s biggest stages, twice pushing World Cup champions Argentina and Lionel Messi to their limits, offering hope that they won’t simply be making up the numbers when they welcome the world in two years’ time.  But the Copa América is now firmly in the rearview mirror for Canada, and it must now deal with the sobering realities of playing in the Concacaf region. Les Rouges were reminded of this in their recent two-legged Nations League quarterfinal against Suriname, which concluded with Tuesday’s 3-0 home win courtesy of a brace from Jacob Shaffelburg and a goal by the in-for...

TORONTO — Jacob Shaffelburg scored twice and Jonathan David moved into top spot among Canadian men’s goal-scorers as Canada blanked Suriname 3-0 on Tuesday for a 4-0 aggregate win in their two-legged Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal.  The 35th-ranked Canadian men beat No. 136 Suriname 1-0 in Paramaribo on Friday, thanks to an 82nd-minute goal by substitute Junior Hoilett. David and Shaffelburg added to that total on Tuesday. David’s fourth goal in his last six games for Canada moved him past Cyle Larin for the top spot among Canada men with 31 goals in 59 internationals. The recently retired Christine Sinclair holds the Canadian and world record with 190 goals (from 331 games). Canada has scored 12 goals in 13 games under coach Jesse Marsch with David involved in eight of them (five goals and three assists). With the win, Canada advances to the Nations League Finals in March at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., and qualifies for the 2025 Gold Cup.  The 18th-ranked U...

MANCHESTER, England — Pep Guardiola has agreed to a contract extension to stay at Manchester City for at least another season, according to British media reports Tuesday. The City manager, whose contract was due to expire at the end of this season, has overseen a period of unprecedented dominance since joining the club in 2016. City has won six Premier League titles in seven years and won the Champions League. City has not commented on several reports that the 53-year-old Guardiola would extend his stay into a 10th season with the deal including an option for an additional year. Under the Catalan coach, City became the first team to win four-straight English league titles. He also led City to the treble in 2023, winning the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup in one season — matching Manchester United’s achievement in 1999. Guardiola’s apparent decision to stay also comes as City faces a slew alleged financial breaches. Punishment could be as extreme as expulsion from the l...