Devin Masch, executive director of the Regina Soccer Association, said his group has approached the Canadian Soccer Association about its intent to host an international game — possibly a World Cup qualifier if the Canadian men’s national team makes it to the hex.

But, just minutes after he was elected, it feels surreal. A Canadian now has the levers of power in his hands. Of course, he has a massive job; in a FIFA community that’s dogged by scandals, CONCACAF may be the most corrupt member of the family. Three previous presidents have all been caught with their hands in a very, very, large cookie jar.

On Monday, Canada announced the NWSL allocations for this year. And it’s down to 11. Despite the fact that NWSL has 10 teams — two more than it did in 2013 and therefore more roster openings — our number of allocations is at an all-time low.

But, if Montagliani was to win the presidency — and his candidacy is backed by the Canadian Soccer Association — it would only grow to this country’s growing presence in the region. Canada’s Sonia Denoncourt has already been charged with helping improve the standard of CONCACAF refereeing; some cynics would say she’s in charge of actually creating a standard for CONCACAF refs. And Scotiabank has taken over as the title sponsor of the CONCACAF Champions League.

This is not how a league is launched. For the first real public pronouncements about the Canadian league to come from contractor who puts bubbles over fields looks bad on basically our whole soccer establishment. What the investors in said Canadian league need to do now is to get ahead of this story — it’s about time for the rumours to end and some sort of public acknowledgement to be made. If a PR person isn’t in place, hire one. Now.

Soccer officials in the United States are moving to ban heading of the ball in youth soccer. Similar measures have been debated in Canada — but we’ve decided to go with an approach that stresses education over regulation. But, is there hard, peer-reviewed evidence out there that supports the notion that heading the ball leads to brain injuries?

Advanced analytics are helping soccer managers across the world assess their teams’ strengths and weaknesses. But Canada was one of the first national programs to embrace analytics — way back in the early ‘80s

When Canadian Soccer Association President Victor Montagliani was tabbed to a part of FIFA’s 13-member reform committee, he was skeptical.

“It’s an American thing,” he said. “There has been no approach to us from the NASL in that capacity. And, it’s not really a major issue here.”

What a swan song for Marc Dos Santos, who has announced he will leave the Ottawa Fury at the end of the NASL season in order to secure a USL/MLS job in 2016. As we enter the stretch run of the NASL’s fall season, his team sits at the top of the league table. After a disappointing spring campaign and early elimination from the Amway Canadian Championship, MDS and his team have rebounded. In this Q and A, Dos Santos talks about NASL, the future of the Fury and his skepticism over a rumoured all-Canadian pro league...