 | |
| First season | 2025 |
|---|---|
| Country | Canada |
| Confederation | CONCACAF (North America) |
| Number of clubs | 6 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Current champion(s) | Vancouver Rise FC (1st title) (2025) |
| Current Supporter's Shield | AFC Toronto (1st title) (2025) |
| Most championships | Vancouver Rise FC (1 title) |
| Most Supporter's Shields | AFC Toronto (1 title) |
| Broadcaster(s) | |
| Website | www |
| Current:2025 Northern Super League season | |
TheNorthern Super League (NSL;French:Super Ligue du Nord-SLN) is atop-division professionalwomen's soccer league in Canada. The league is owned and operated by Project 8 Sports, Inc., and includes six teams:Halifax Tides FC,Montreal Roses FC,AFC Toronto,Calgary Wild FC,Ottawa Rapid FC andVancouver Rise FC. The league played its first matches in April 2025.
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Upon her retirement from professional soccer in July 2021,Diana Matheson began advocating for both a national domestic women's league andNational Women's Soccer League team in Canada.[1] Her early plans specified a six-month professional league with player leadership, and cited her experience with theOttawa Fury andVancouver Whitecaps of the defunctUSL W-League as examples of what Canada lacked in player development opportunities.[2] Matheson enteredQueen's University at Kingston to pursue aMaster of Business Administration degree in August 2021,[1] and enrolled in theUEFA Executive Master for International Players program toward sports administration.[3]
In December 2021, Matheson presented a plan for women's soccer in Canada to theCanadian Soccer Association, but discussions did not progress. While attending Queen's, Matheson co-founded Project 8 Sports, Inc., in June 2022 with master's classmate Thomas Gilbert and began planning a professional domestic women's soccer league. Matheson formally announced the league – known provisionally asProject 8 – on December 5, 2022, onThe National alongside former national-team teammateChristine Sinclair, who advised the group. The announcement included the league's first two teams in the Whitecaps andCalgary Foothills WFC, and first two sponsors inCIBC andAir Canada. She also announced talks withToronto FC ownersMaple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) andCF Montreal, both ofMajor League Soccer, and a target of May 2024 for sanctioning from Canada Soccer.[3] Matheson named Dome Productions as the league's initial broadcast production partner.[4]
In January 2023, Matheson noted that talks had also included independent and foreign ownership groups, and announced franchise fees of $1 million with an expectation of owners investing $10 million total over the first five seasons,[5] with entry including equity in the league itself.[6] She also detailed limits on foreign players to seven per team, and suggested that the new league would not deal withCanada Soccer Business, the entity that owns broadcast rights to theCanadian Premier League men's soccer competition.[5]
On April 26, 2023, Project 8 announced the league's third team,AFC Toronto, with an independent ownership group composed of people on the board ofNorth Toronto Soccer Club (NTSC) competing inLeague1 Ontario, though the Project 8 team would not be formally affiliated with the NTSC organization. The initial announcement did not include participation from Toronto FC or MLSE.[7] In May, Project 8 was recognized as a "league in membership" by the Canadian Soccer Association.[8]
On May 28, 2024, the official logo and name for the league were revealed as the Northern Super League, along with the announcement that teams from bothMontreal andOttawa would also join the league for the 2025 inaugural season.[9][10] The league avoided including Canada and the word "women" in its name to emulate other successful sports leagues.[11] On May 30, the name and logo ofCalgary Wild FC was unveiled.[12][13] On June 13, the name and logo ofHalifax Tides FC was announced.[14] On August 15, the name and logo ofOttawa Rapid FC was unveiled.[15][16] On August 26, the name and logo ofVancouver Rise FC was unveiled.[17] On October 8, the name and logo ofMontreal Roses FC was unveiled.[18]
On July 8, formerCFL andWoodbine Entertainment Group executive Christina Litz was announced as the league's president with Matheson moving into the role of chief growth officer.[19]
The inaugural match was held on April 16, 2025, with Vancouver hosting Calgary atBC Place. The first goal in league history was apenalty kick scored byQuinn.[20]
The league's preparations and launch are profiled inMichèle Hozer's 2025 documentary filmThe Pitch.[21]
On September 8, 2025, the league announced that it was seeking to add an expansion team in 2027, engaging Whitecap Sports Group to identify and evaluate a new ownership group for club opportunities, focusing on Central and Western Canada.[22]
For theinaugural season in 2025, the six founding clubs will each play 25 matches—three will have 13 home and 12 away matches, while the remaining three will have 12 home matches and 13 away matches. The league uses thestandard points system in world soccer—three points for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. A single table is used to determine the four teams who advance to the postseason playoffs, beginning with a semifinal staged in a home-and-awayaggregate series; the higherseed hosts the second leg. A single-leg league championship is scheduled for November 15.[23] On July 18, 2025, it was announced that the league's first final would be hosted atBMO Field inToronto.[24]
The Supporters Shield is awarded to the regular season champions. The Diana B. Matheson Cup is awarded to the winner of the NSL's playoff final.[25]
The Northern Super League clubs primarily use shared stadiums and have lower scheduling priority compared to the primary or established tenants. Matchdays were determined by available dates at these venues as well as breaks for international play mandated by theFIFA International Match Calendar.[11]
On April 4, 2024, the league confirmed that six clubs had submitted applications to the CSA to get professional status.[26]
| Team | City | Stadium | Capacity | Joining | Head coach | Ownership | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Wild FC | Calgary, Alberta | McMahon Stadium | 35,400 | 2025 |  Lydia Bedford | Calgary Foothills FC | [13] |
| Halifax Tides FC | Halifax, Nova Scotia | Wanderers Grounds | 6,500 | 2025 |  Stephen Hart (interim) | Courtney Sherlock (CEO) | [14] |
| Montreal Roses FC | Laval, Quebec | Stade Boréale | 5,581 | 2025 |  Robert Rositoiu |
| [27] |
| Ottawa Rapid FC | Ottawa, Ontario | TD Place Stadium | 6,419 | 2025 |  Katrine Pedersen | Diana Matheson Tom Gilbert | [9][28] |
| AFC Toronto | Toronto, Ontario | York Lions Stadium | 4,000 | 2025 |  Marko Milanović | [29][30] | |
| Vancouver Rise FC | Burnaby, British Columbia | Swangard Stadium | 4,500[31] | 2025 | Anja Heiner-Møller |
| [32] |
On June 11, 2024, the NSL announced multi-year deals withCBC,Radio-Canada,TSN andRDS.[33][34][35] On April 7, 2025, the NSL announced multi-year media partnership withESPN to air matches in the United States.ESPN+, will stream at least 40 matches including select playoff games and the final.[36]
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