2025 Canadian Premier League final
| Event | 2025 Canadian Premier League season | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| After extra time | |||||||
| Date | November 9, 2025 | ||||||
| Venue | TD Place Stadium, Ottawa, Ontario | ||||||
| CPL Finals MVP | David Rodríguez (Atlético Ottawa) | ||||||
| Referee | Michael Venne | ||||||
| Attendance | 13,132 | ||||||
| Weather | Snow −1 °C (30 °F) 93% humidity[1] | ||||||
The 2025 Canadian Premier League final was the seventh edition of the CPL Finals, the post-season championship of the Canadian Premier League, the top level of Canadian soccer, which determined the winner of the 2025 Canadian Premier League season. It was played on November 9, 2025 at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario between Atlético Ottawa and Cavalry FC. The hosts, Atlético Ottawa, clinched their first league championship.
Amid snowy conditions that caused the national women's league playoffs to be postponed, the decision was made to proceed with the final. The weather resulted in the match being stopped five times during regulation time to clear away snow, and the start of extra time was delayed by an hour to allow snowplows to clear more of the pitch. Ottawa won 2–1 with two goals from David Rodríguez.[2] The match attracted significant international media coverage both for the wintery weather and for Rodríguez's first goal, a bicycle kick that was widely dubbed the "icicle kick".[3][4][5][6][7]
Path to the final
The 2025 CPL season was contested by eight teams. Each team played four games against each of the seven opponents for a total of 28 matches. The top-five teams from the regular season qualified for the playoffs, which begin on October 22. The playoffs featured a Page playoff format where teams entered in different rounds depending on their finishing position. All matches in the playoffs were played as single legs. The final was contested by the winners of the first and second semifinals.[8]
Regular season standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Forge (S) | 28 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 51 | 22 | +29 | 58 | First semifinal and 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup |
| 2 | Atlético Ottawa (C) | 28 | 15 | 11 | 2 | 54 | 28 | +26 | 56 | First semifinal |
| 3 | Cavalry | 28 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 47 | 36 | +11 | 42 | Quarterfinal |
| 4 | HFX Wanderers | 28 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 41 | 34 | +7 | 39 | Play-in round |
| 5 | York United | 28 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 43 | 38 | +5 | 38 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Total number of wins; 3) Head-to-head; 4) Goal differential; 5) Goals for; 6) Away goals differential; 7) Away goals for; 8) Home goals differential; 9) Home goals for; 10) Fewest disciplinary points; 11) Most under-21 domestic player minutes; 12) Drawing of lots.[8]
(C) Champion (qualified to Champions Cup Round one); (S) CPL Shield winner (qualified to Champions Cup Round one)
Playoff bracket
| Play-in round | First semifinal | Second semifinal | Final | |||||||||||||||
| October 26 – Hamilton | November 9 – Ottawa | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Forge | 1 | 2 | Atlético Ottawa (a.e.t.) | 2 | |||||||||||||
| 2 | Atlético Ottawa | 2 | November 2 – Hamilton | 3 | Cavalry | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Forge | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| Quarterfinal | 3 | Cavalry | 1 | |||||||||||||||
| October 26 – Foothills County | ||||||||||||||||||
| October 22 – Halifax | 3 | Cavalry | 4 | |||||||||||||||
| 4 | HFX Wanderers | 2 (4) | 5 | York United | 1 | |||||||||||||
| 5 | York United (p) | 2 (5) | ||||||||||||||||
Background
Atlético Ottawa
Atlético Ottawa reached the CPL final for the second time in its six seasons of play. Ottawa lost its previous final in 2022.
Cavalry FC
Cavalry FC was the defending champion, having won the league for the first time in 2024. It reached the CPL final for the third year in a row and the fourth time in its seven seasons of play.
Head-to-head
In the 2025 regular season, Ottawa defeated Cavalry three times (3–1 on April 26, 2–0 on June 28, and 3–0 on September 27) and the teams drew once (2–2 on August 23). This was the first time that the teams met in a postseason.
Venue
TD Place Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario, home of Atlético Ottawa, was the host stadium for the final. This was determined by the outcome of the playoffs' first semifinal on October 26 between regular season winner Forge FC and second seed Atlético Ottawa; Atlético Ottawa won the match 2–1.
The match took place in heavy snowfall and subzero temperatures. Play was paused several times to clear snow from the field, resulting in the match taking over three hours to complete including extra time. During regular time only the lines and penalty areas were able to be kept clear, but the snowfall lessened as the match went on and the field was made nearly snow-free for extra time.[9][10]
Broadcasting
The CPL final was broadcast on OneSoccer and TSN in Canada and Fox Sports 2 in the United States.
Pre-match
Associated with the final, the annual Canadian Premier League Awards took place on November 7 at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Quebec.[11]
Match
| Atlético Ottawa | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Cavalry |
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Report |
Atlético Ottawa
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Cavalry
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CPL Final MVP:
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Assistant referees:
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Match rules
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Post-match
Following the match, Atlético Ottawa was awarded the North Star Cup and qualified for the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup, the first time doing so in the club's history. Ottawa's attacking midfielder David Rodríguez was named the Finals Most Valuable Player.[12]
See also
Notes
- ^ The match, originally scheduled for 5:00 pm, was delayed 20 minutes due to the need for snow removal.
References
- ^ "Ottawa, Canada Weather History | Weather Underground". www.wunderground.com. Retrieved November 9, 2025.
- ^ a b Kloke, Joshua (November 9, 2025). "In blizzard-like conditions, Atletico Ottawa secures its first Canadian Premier League championship over Cavalry FC". The Athletic. Retrieved November 9, 2025.
- ^ Davis, Matt (November 10, 2025). "Watch 'icicle kick' light up blizzard-hit Canadian final". BBC Sport. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Pringle, Josh (November 10, 2025). "'Icicle Kick Game': Social media reacts to snowy Canadian Premier League final in Ottawa". CTV News. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Steiner, Ben (November 10, 2025). "MLS Wants Winter Soccer? Canadian Premier League Final Had Insane Bicycle Kick in Blizzard". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Lynch, Joey (November 9, 2025). "Icicle kick?! Crazy goal helps win Canadian Premier League final". ESPN. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Tasch, Justin (November 9, 2025). "Canadian Premier League final played in wild blizzard conditions — with one of the greatest goals you'll ever see". New York Post. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ a b "2025 CPL Competition Guidelines". Canadian Premier League. April 1, 2025. Archived from the original on April 2, 2025. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
- ^ Pritchard, Trevor. "Atlético Ottawa top Cavalry FC in driving snowstorm to win 1st ever CPL title". CBC News. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Steiner, Ben. "MLS Wants Winter Soccer? Canadian Premier League Final Had Insane Bicycle Kick in Blizzard". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Comtois, Martin (November 8, 2025). "Un triplé historique signé Samuel Salter au gala de la Première ligue canadienne" [A historic hat trick by Samuel Salter at the Canadian Premier League gala]. Radio-Canada (in French). Archived from the original on November 8, 2025. Retrieved November 8, 2025.
- ^ Molinaro, John. "Atlético Ottawa beats Cavalry FC in 'Snow Bowl' to win CPL Final". TFC Republic. Retrieved November 10, 2025.