PREVIEW: What to watch out for in the preliminary round of the 2026 TELUS Canadian Championship
The TELUS Canadian Championship returns this week, as 14 of the 15 teams participating in the tournament are set to face off over the next few days in the preliminary round.
From there, seven teams will join the four-time defending champions, the Vancouver Whitecaps, in the quarter-finals, where they’ll look to disrupt the Whitecaps' journey for a fifth straight Voyageurs Cup crown.
Before dreaming of lifting a trophy, however, those 14 teams set to face off in the preliminary round will first need to take care of business at this stage, which won’t be easy - with each preliminary round game being single elimination, the margin for error is much lower in these early matches.
For neutrals, that’s great, as these matches will capture the true essence of cup football (and the jeopardy that comes with it), but that doesn’t make things any less stressful for the teams who will survive the early stage of this cup journey.
With that in mind, here’s what you need to know about the seven preliminary round games that are on tap this week on OneSoccer.
Toronto FC vs. Atlético Ottawa:
On paper, this might be the most intriguing matchup of the preliminary round, as the eight-time Canadian Championship winners, Toronto FC, host the 2025 North Star Cup winners, Atlético Ottawa, in a tasty Major League Soccer vs. Canadian Premier League clash.
Ready for the fight.#AtleticoOttawa #EarnYourStripes pic.twitter.com/OHfbeFMuae
— Atlético Ottawa (@atletiOttawa) May 4, 2026
The first time these teams have ever met (in fact, it’s the first time Atlético Ottawa will face an MLS team in this competition), there’s a lot at stake for each side in this game, too.
For Toronto, the pressure is on for them in this tournament, as the bracket is set up for them to make a run to the final, given that they wouldn’t face a fellow MLS team until that match. Considering that they’ve only been eliminated by MLS teams in their Canadian Championship history, that’s no small detail - they’ve avoided the sort of upsets that have plagued CF Montréal in recent years, and the Vancouver Whitecaps at the end of the 2010s and beginning of this decade.
At the same time, when you remember that TFC have won just one Canadian Championship this decade, coming in that strange 2020 tournament (that they completed in 2022), that they haven’t been upset in recent years won’t be a point of happiness - instead, they’ll rue that they’ve typically come up short in the biggest games they’ve played in this competition lately.
For example, last year, they were knocked out in the preliminary round by CF Montréal, denying them the opportunity to make a deep run in this competition - given their aspirations for this tournament, and their rivalry with Montréal, a loss like that will have hurt a lot.
Because of that, the mission is simple for TFC - final or bust. They’ve got a decent chance of qualifying for the MLS Cup Playoffs after a good start to the 2026 campaign (although they’ve struggled to turn draws into wins lately), but there’s no doubt that winning the Canadian Championship is their best path towards silverware this season, so when you consider that, and their favourable bracket, the pressure will be on them to do well in this match.
Ottawa, meanwhile, find themselves in a strange spot heading into this tournament. After the 2025 that they had, which saw them almost win the CPL Shield before claiming the North Star Cup in dramatic fashion, they’ll feel capable of doing well in this competition, especially after reaching the semi-finals of this tournament a year ago (although they’ll rue not reaching the final, as they were shockingly beaten by Vancouver FC in a matchup many expected them to win).
At the same time, given that they’re off to a tough start to 2026 after some key departures, starting the CPL season with a 1W-1D-3L record (after getting blown out by Nashville SC in the Concacaf Champions Cup), it feels like they’re not in the best position for a tough matchup like this Toronto one, either.
For what it’s worth, TFC is dealing with a lengthy injury list right now, which could open the door for Ottawa to pull off an upset, but if that sort of result is to happen, Ottawa will need to play much better than they have so far this season. 
CF Montréal vs. Calgary Blizzard:
Of the seven preliminary round matchups, this might be the most lopsided meeting, as CF Montréal hosts Alberta Premier League side Calgary Blizzard in a rare MLS vs. PSL Canada battle.
« C'est quelque chose qu’on prend très au sérieux et qu'on veut gagner cette année. » - Philippe Eullaffroy sur le Championnat canadien TELUS 🏆
— CF Montréal (@cfmontreal) May 4, 2026
“This is something we take very seriously, and we want to win it this year.” – Philippe Eullaffroy on the TELUS Canadian Championship… pic.twitter.com/m3Nb4dTexM
While many will be keeping a close eye on a potential upset from the Blizzard, however, they’ll just be hoping to put up a good account of themselves in what’s expected to be an extremely tough matchup for them.
Even if this is a struggling CF Montréal side, one that’s been off to a slow start to the MLS season (although they’ve improved since firing head coach Marco Donadel) and has been eliminated by CPL side Forge FC in back-to-back editions of this competition, this is a matchup they’ll expect to cruise through, and for good reason.
Given that the Blizzard haven’t even kicked off their Alberta Premier League season yet, they’ll hope just to keep the scoreline close, and then perhaps maybe nab a goal - they do that, and they’ll be ecstatic.
For what it’s worth, the last time CF Montréal hosted a PSL Canada side, which came in the 2023 edition of this tournament when they were drawn against the Vaughan Azzurri, they only won that match 2-0, so the Blizzard could use that game as something to cling to.
No doubt, though, the expectation for Montréal is that they cruise through to the next round, as they look to avenge how their last two tournaments went as they look to reach their first final since 2023.
FC Supra du Québec vs. Woodbridge Strikers:
Photo Credit: Ayoub Ghariani (Diamoncia)
The newest professional club in Canada will make their Canadian Championship debut in this round, as FC Supra will host the Woodbridge Strikers in an interesting CPL vs. PSL Canada matchup.
Despite being a new club, though, Supra enter this tournament with the expectation that they can cause problems for opponents, as they’ve certainly proved capable of doing in their first few games of existence in the CPL. Armed with a good squad and a clear identity, they’ve been far from your typical new club.
Because of that, they’ll enter this game with something to prove, which could be bad news for Woodbridge, who might’ve first seen the draw and thought that they were set up to make some noise against a side still finding its feet.
At the same time, that’s not to say that Woodbridge can’t still make some noise. Far from it, as they’ll enter this game knowing that if they have the right approach and game plan, they could pick up a big upset.
The memory that will live forever…champions! @WSCStrikers
— Woodbridge Strikers SC Ontario Premier League Men (@WoodbridgeOPLM) September 4, 2025
@L1OMens @League1ON #WoodbridgeSC #TheBridge #L10 #League1Ontario#Matchday #wearewoodbridge #champions pic.twitter.com/mMFA2GzCDq
Unlike the Blizzard, Woodbridge have already kicked off their Ontario Premier League season, so they at least enter this game a bit more prepared in that regard - that sort of thing can go a long way for a team looking to pull off this sort of result.
If they’re to do that, however, they’ll have to be ready for a Supra team that will be a lot more motivated than most tend to be at this early stage - with it being their first steps into this competition, they’ll be eager to leave their mark, and prove that their good start to the CPL season isn’t a fluke.
Forge FC vs. Halifax Wanderers:
For a second straight season, these two familiar CPL sides will meet in the preliminary round of this tournament - just days after Forge picked up an impressive 3-1 road win over these same Halifax Wanderers in league play.
Now, Forge will look to repeat the trick on their home pitch just as they did last year in this competition, where they kick-started a run to the semi-finals with a 3-1 win at Hamilton Stadium.
Having become a consistent force in this competition, reaching the semi-finals in four of the last five editions of the tournament, Forge will want to make another deep run this year, one that perhaps culminates with that ever-so elusive trip to the final.
On paper, the draw is set up quite nicely for them to do that again, so they’ll feel that there’s no reason why they can’t continue to do what’s worked for them, especially when considering some of the results they’ve picked up in recent years - in particular, eliminating CF Montréal in back-to-back editions in 2024 and 2025 will have felt quite good after losing to them in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
The Wanderers, meanwhile, enter this tournament with all sorts of pressure to do well, having been eliminated in the preliminary round of the last three editions, which included some results that left scars (such as a shock upset to CS Saint-Laurent in 2024).
Given that they’ve now hired head coach Vanni Sartini, who won this tournament three times with the Whitecaps between 2022 and 2024, they’ll hope that his experience in this competition can be exactly what this team needs to potentially reach a semi-final for the first time, because, as said earlier, the bracket is set up nicely for the winner of this matchup.
Pacific FC vs. Cavalry FC:
Interestingly, these two teams have a lot of history in this competition, having met in the 2019, 2021 and 2023 editions of the competition, with Pacific winning in 2021 and 2023, and Cavalry winning in 2019.
Because of that, it’ll be fascinating to see how this year’s clash plays out, especially considering that Pacific enters this match at the bottom of the CPL table, while Cavalry enters in second place.
Historically, Pacific have thrived in this competition, reaching the semi-finals three times (2021, 2022, 2024), whereas Cavalry have only reached the semi-finals once (2019), so this will be a good test case on whether Pacific can channel what’s worked for them in past tournaments, even despite not being in great form in CPL play. .
At the very least, if Pacific are to go out, they won’t go down easily - in the two years they failed to reach the semi-finals in 2023 and 2025, they lost on penalties in each of those games, so it feels natural to expect a close matchup.
For Cavalry, though, they’ll want to avoid such a battle, as they try to capitalize on Pacific’s poor form. The last thing they’ll want to do is to give Pacific confidence, especially considering that they’ve been playing better than their record perhaps indicates.
Given how good Cavalry have been, though, they’ll feel confident in their ability to do that - fuelled by the fact that they haven’t done as well in this competition as hoped in recent years.
Inter Toronto vs. CS Saint-Laurent:
Off to a strong start to the CPL season, Inter Toronto enters this matchup full of confidence, as they get set to take on 2024 tournament darlings, CS Saint-Laurent, who famously beat the Halifax Wanderers in the preliminary round of that competition before putting up a good account of themselves against Toronto FC in the quarter-finals.
GOAL ⚜️
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) May 22, 2024
CS SAINT-LAURENT SCORES AGAINST #TFClive 💥
The Ligue1 Quebec side ends the evening with a much-deserved goal as Rickson Aristilde beats Luka Gavran to finish this TELUS #CanChamp match with a goal to celebrate proudly 😎 pic.twitter.com/aeV2PLwjJf
Certainly, though, with how they’ve been playing, Inter will feel capable of cruising past this tie, even if they’ll know that it’s never easy to play Ligue 1 Québec sides - even if the league will have lost a lot of individual talent lately, thanks to the arrival of Supra, as they swooped up a lot of L1QC players to fill their team.
Anyone who knows the Québecois soccer scene will know that even losing a few of those stalwarts will not have had much of an impact on the league’s ability to produce hidden gems - in fact, Supra’s arrival might only help the league, as it’ll offer players within the circuit a clearer path to playing professionally.
You have to imagine if Saint-Laurent pulls off another upset like the one they did a few years ago, Supra and other CPL clubs would take notice of that, so they’ll enter this matchup knowing what this could do for them.
At the same time, it’s far from an ideal matchup for Saint-Laurent, as this Inter team is deep, organized and tough to play against. A recent 4-1 win vs. Atlético Ottawa in CPL play showed that, so look for them to keep on building on this strong start.
Having felt frustrated by their quarter-final eliminated to Ottawa last year, they’re also hungry to reach the semi-finals for the second time in their history, and it won’t be lost on them that they could potentially make that happen by beating Forge across two legs - given how this team feeds off matchups like that, you have to think that they’re keeping their fingers crossed that they and Forge can both find a way through to the next round.
Because of that, Inter will be expected to take care of the business - even if they’ll know that you can never underestimate this Saint-Laurent side.
Vancouver FC vs. Langley United:
This round of games caps off with a fascinating local derby in British Columbia, as Vancouver FC hosts Langley United in a CPL vs. BC Premier League clash.
Two clubs that know each other well - several of Vancouver’s players have spent time with Langley thanks to a strategic partnership between the clubs - Langley will want to take advantage of that familiarity, and a lack of travel compared to the other PSL Canada clubs (who all must leave their respective provinces for their preliminary round matchups), to pull off an upset.
The first BC Premier League team that isn’t the TSS Rovers to play in this round, they’d love to build on the sort of work the Rovers have done in this competition - their upset over Valour in the 2023 tournament was legendary, and they fared well in both of their preliminary round eliminations in both 2024 and 2025 - showing what teams in BC are capable of.
On the other side, though, awaits a Vancouver team that enters this tournament with new energy - it must not be forgotten that they reached the 2025 final of this competition, becoming the first CPL team to do so in a full tournament, after all.
GOAL 🦅🦅
— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) October 2, 2025
Nicolás Mezquida gets a consolation goal for @vanfootballclub ⚽️
🔴 Watch TELUS #CanChamp on OneSoccer & TSN 4/5 pic.twitter.com/OGOIJ51lZy
Even if they weren’t able to lift the Voyageurs Cup, their journey to the final, and even the 4-2 loss to the Whitecaps in that final, were memories that this club had long dreamed of making, after having had a less-than-ideal start to their first few years of existence.
With those experiences under their belt, they’ll want to prove that last year was not a fluke - and winning this game would be a nice place to start. Off to a good start to the CPL season, accentuated by an emphatic 3-1 win over Salish Sea Derby rivals Pacific FC this past weekend, confidence will certainly be high in this group.
