But, judging by the lukewarm reaction this has received in Canadian soccer circles so far, it's fair to say that the football followers in this country — the people who have dispatched the likes of Owen Hargreaves and Asmir Begovic into their own emotional black holes — have already given up on Tabla ever wearing Canada red again. It feels like Barcelona just signed some phenom from some other country.

The assessors suggested that it was “likely” that the joint bid to host the World Cup would clash with Calgary’s continuing pursuit of the 2026 Winter Olympics. The success of the Calgary Olympic bid was the only potential risk on the report deemed as a potential “worst-case” outcome.

So, if there was one thing Canada would have wanted out of its final group-stage match, it was a better start. And they got it. Shana Flynn got a hat trick in the the first 18 minutes of the match, as the Canadians went on to trounce Haiti by a 4-0 score. With the win, Canada secures top spot in its group.

The hottest new club in the Caribbean is the Ato Boldon Stadium. Located in hot, humid Trinidad and Tobago, this place has everything. Bad calls, dubious goalkeeping and a Canadian team that’s advancing to the semifinal round of the U-20 CONCACAF Women’s Championship!

But the linesman’s flag was up, despite the fact it was impossible for Stratigakis to be offside because she followed her shot — which was then touched by the keeper.

With FC Edmonton not running a professional program in 2018, Ledgerwood had a conundrum. He needed to find work, he had a possibility of returning to Europe to play, but with a wife and young son, his family circumstances had changed since he last played across the Atlantic.

As CanPL moves toward its 2019 launch as this country’s division one, despite the presence of three Canadian sides in MLS, it will be interesting to see what the league takes away from MLS — and what it stays away from.

But, after a phone call with LAFC head coach Bob Bradley, MDS was convinced that maybe he could be an assistant coach.

Thank you, Canadian Championship schedule makers.

The new commissioner of the Canadian Premier League prefers the independent club system. He dreams of a time when Canada has a Premier League, a second division and a third division — and teams are promoted and relegated through those leagues. He envisions Canadian pro soccer teams from coast-to-coast.