Alberta has made soccer news for the wrong reasons in 2010 as an ugly power struggle has crippled the Alberta Soccer Association. The province continues to be badly under-represented on most national teams, which are dominated by players from British Columbia and Ontario. The rise of BMO Field and Stade Saputo has made Commonwealth Stadium, once the official home of Canada’s national soccer team, a place reserved to host Canadian games only if they are World Cup qualifiers in winter months against Mexico, in hopes of freezing out the regional power. Gains made in boosting the game in Ontario and Quebec have taken a toll on Alberta. So, that’s why the selection of Ethan Gage as the country’s male U-20 player of the year is a big deal.

The Vancouver Whitecaps might only be joining MLS in 2011, but the club’s youth development programs is still miles ahead of TFC Academy. The Whitecaps Residency got another feather in its cap Monday when the Canadian Soccer Association named Bryce Alderson the country’s male U-17 player of the year.

According to the CSA, FIFA expects a “minimum of six cities” to be hosts for the 2015 WWC, that’s less than the number we see for a men’s World Cup. When it comes to FieldTurf, the CSA isn’t expecting there to be any issues. The CSA noted that the recent U-17 Women’s World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago had artificial fields that met FIFA specs. And, the U-20 World Cup final was played on the BMO, dammit, National Soccer Stadium FieldTurf in 2007.