League1 Canada (L1C; French: Ligue1 Canada) is a national pro–am soccer organization in Canada. It consists of four regional leagues; League1 Alberta, League1 British Columbia, League1 Ontario, and Ligue1 Québec with each league operating men's and women's divisions. L1C is overseen by Canada Soccer Business, in partnership with participating provincial member federations.
In 2011, the Première ligue de soccer du Québec was established to begin play in 2012, marking the return of semi-professional soccer in the province of Quebec.[1] In 2013, League1 Ontario was founded as a semi-professional league by the Ontario Soccer Association to begin play in 2014 with a men's division,[2] followed by a women's division in 2015.[3] After multiple years of consideration, League1 British Columbia began play in 2022 in both the male and female divisions.[4]
On March 31, 2022, League1 Canada was announced as an alliance of the three existing division three pro-am leagues, aligning the national soccer pathway.[5] L1O and L1BC adopted new logos that day, while the PLSQ transitioned to a common logo and rebranded to Ligue1 Québec in 2023.[5] Dino Rossi became the first league president in May 2022.[6]
From August 12 to 14, 2022, the inaugural Women's Interprovincial Championship was held in Laval, Quebec. The competition was a four-team knockout tournament featuring the champions of each of the three divisions, as well as an additional team from the PLSQ (allocated as host).[7][8]A.S. Blainville won the inaugural title.[9][10] The 2023 tournament was held in British Columbia.[11][12]
In March 2023, League1 Alberta was announced with a five-team exhibition series to be played that summer.[13] The league plans to officially launch for the 2024 season with a minimum of six teams. In June 2023, League1 Prairies was announced with plans for the league to operate between Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The league plans to launch for the 2025 season.[14]
On December 7, 2023, League1 Canada announced it had reached an agreement with the Alberta Soccer Association to add League1 Alberta to its national alliance of Division III Pro-Am leagues.[15] Later that week, Dino Rossi resigned from his role as League1 Canada president.[16]
Provincial competitions
Leagues
The league champion for League1 Ontario and League1 British Columbia is determined through a playoffs tournament, while the league champion for Ligue1 Québec is determined through the season standings.
^Trophy is awarded to the club with the most combined points acquired in the regular season by their men's and women's teams.
^Trophy was awarded from 2012–2014 and 2017–2019 to men's Premier Development League teams in British Columbia. The trophy only became affiliated with League1 BC in 2022.
Interprovincial competitions
Women
The Women's Inter-Provincial Championship is a four-team knockout tournament organized by League1 Canada. It is contested annually by the three provincial league champions with a fourth team qualifying from the host province's league. The tournament is held at the end of the season and determines a national champion.
The table below shows every officially recognized title won by League1 Canada clubs (including official tournaments/competitions outside of the League1 Canada system).
Note: There is no clear information from CSA about tier of U.S. based leagues which have Canadian clubs. In terms of historical information, they have been deployed as tier 3 league as USSF have done.
